PROCEEriKCS  of  t!  ?  1  i-jYTH 
!  CONFERENCE  FOR  EDU- 


(=••' 


PROCEEDINGS  of  the  TENTH 
CONFERENCE  FOR  EDU- 
CATION IN  THE  SOUTH 

WITH  AN  APPENDIX  IN  REVIEW  OF  FIVE  YEARS 


PINEHURST,  N.  C. 

APRIL  9,  1907 


PUBLISHED  by  the  EXECUTIVE  COMMITTEE  of  the  CONFERENCE 

S.  C.  MITCHELL,   Chairman 
RICHMOND  COLLEGE,  RICHMOND,  VIRGINIA 


PREFACE 


The  invitation  tendered  at  Lexington  to  hold  the  Tenth  Con- 
ference at  Nashville,  Tennessee,  was  cordially  confirmed  in  the 
autumn,  and  preparations  were  going  forward  to  meet  in  that 
place  when  the  question  was  raised  whether  it  might  not  be 
well  to  return  to  the  usage  of  the  earlier  Conferences  at  Capon 
Springs  and  select  for  this  meeting  some  more  retired  spot. 
This  was  particularly  urged  in  view  of  the  exigencies  resulting 
from  the  sudden  death  of  Dr.  Mclver.  A  meeting  of  the  Exec- 
utive Committee  and  other  officers  was  held  at  Atlanta,  Geor- 
gia, February  14th,  and  it  was  there  decided  to  hold  the  Con- 
ference at  the  Carolina  Hotel  at  Pinehurst,  North  Carolina. 

In  making  the  arrangements  no  stenographers  were  engaged 
to  report  the  ex-tempore  exercises.  Hence  it  has  been  necessa- 
ry to  ask  some  of  the  participants  to  prepare  their  personal 
manuscripts  for  this  publication.  Thanks  are  due  to  many 
who  responded,  most  of  them  with  gratifying  promptness. 

A  meeting  of  the  Southern  Educational  Board  in  August 
was  favored  with  a  number  of  reports  from  State  Superintend- 
ents and  Agents  of  the  Board,  which  contained  valuable  infor- 
mation in  line  with  the  objects  of  the  Conference.  The  request 
was  therefore  made  that  a  paper  be  prepared,  on  the  basis  of 
these  reports,  and  others  of  like  import  presented  at  previous 
meetings  of  the  Board,  to  be  appended  to  the  published  pro- 
ceedings of  the  Tenth  Conference.  Accordingly  such  a  paper 
has  been  printed  herewith  as  an  Appendix. 


Let  us  find  a  way  to  train  the  chil- 
dren of  democracy  for  citizenship  and 
service. 

Alderman. 


CONTENTS 


OPENING  SESSION,  TUESDAY  MORNING 

PAGE. 

ADDRESS  OF  WELCOME.     By  Gov.  Robert  B.  Glenn 5 

LETTER.     From  Mr.  Robert  C.  Ogden 7 

THE  TASK  OF  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD.    By  Samuel  Chiles  Mitchell  ...  8 

BUSINESS.     ANNOUNCEMENT  OF  COMMITTEES,  ETC 17 

THE  SOUTHERN  EDUCATION  BOARD.     By  Edgar  Gardner  Murphy  .    .  18 

TUESDAY  EVENING  SESSION. 

BUSINESS.      ANNOUNCEMENT   OF    COMMITTEES 46 

EDUCATION  BY  THE  STATE  AND  FOR  THE  STATE.     By  Harry  Pratt 

Judson 46 

EDUCATION  FOR  THE  STATE.     By  Frederick  W.  Hinitt 57 

WEDNESDAY  MORNING  SESSION. 
SUPERINTENDENT'S   MEETING. 

BUSINESS.     ANNOUNCEMENTS 63 

REPORTS  FROM  THE  SEVERAL  STATES. 

WEST  VIRGINIA.    By  Thomas  C.  Miller 63 

SOUTH  CAROLINA.     By  O.  B.  Martin 70 

GEORGIA.     By  W.  B.  Merritt 73 

KENTUCKY.     By  J.  H.  Fuqua,  Sr 76 

ALABAMA.    By  Harry  C.  Gunnels 79 

MISSISSIPPI.     By  H.  L.  Whitfleld , .  82 

LOUISIANA.     By  J.  B.  Aswell 84 

ARKANSAS.     By  J.  J.  Doyne 86 

VIRGINIA.     By  J.  D.  Eggleston,  Jr 90 

NORTH  CAROLINA.     By  J.  Y.  Joyner 94 

ADDRESS.     By  Governor  Joseph  M.  Terrell   .  102 


WEDNESDAY  AFTERNOON   SESSION. 
WOMEN'S  MEETING. 

ADDRESS.     By  Mrs.  J.  Lindsay  Patterson 108 

REPORTS  OF  WOMEN'S  WORK  IN  THE  SEVERAL  STATES. 

KENTUCKY.    By  Mrs.  C.  P.  Barnes 115 

By  Miss  Irene  T.  Myers 119 

VIRGINIA.     By  Mrs.  L.  R.  Dashiell • 124 

By  Miss  Alice  N.  Parker 125 

By  Miss  Carrie  Lee  Campbell 127 

ALABAMA.    By  Mrs.  J.  D.  Matlock 128 

By  Mrs.  Erwin  Craighead 131 

SOUTH  CAROLINA.    By  Miss  Mary  T.  Nance 133 

By  Mrs.  A.  A.  McKissick 141 

GEORGIA.     By  Mrs.  Walter  B.  Hill 142 

By  Mrs.  M.  E.  Lipscomb 147 

.  By  Mrs.  Eugene  B.  Heard 151 

LOUISIANA.    By  Miss  Eleanor  Riggs 152 

ADDRESS.    By  Mrs.  Martha  Gielow 157 

BUSINESS. 

WEDNESDAY  EVENING  SESSION. 

BUSINESS,    REPORTS  OF  COMMITTEES 159 

RESOLUTIONS.    Memorial  of  Dr.  Charles  D.  Mclver 160 

HIGH  SCHOOL  PROGRESS  IN  VIRGINIA.     By  Bruce  R.  Payne  ....  161 

SECONDARY  EDUCATION  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA.    By  W.  H.  Hand  .    .    .  165 

THE  HIGH  SCHOOL  AND  THE  UNIVERSITY.    By  James  H.  Kirkland  .  168 

THURSDAY  MORNING  SESSION. 

BUSINESS.     ELECTION  OF  OFFICERS 182 

IMPROVED  CONDITIONS  FOR  THE  SOUTHERN  FARMER.     By  Seaman  A. 

Knapp 183 

FARM  IMPROVEMENT  IN  VIRGINIA.    By  T.  O.  Sandy 193 

THE  ART  OF  RAISING  CORN  SUCCESSFULLY.    By  E.  Mclver  William- 
son    195 

THE  RE-DIRECTING  OF  RURAL  INSTITUTIONS.    By  L.  H.  Bailey  .    .    .  200 

THURSDAY  AFTERNOON  SESSION. 

SCHOOL  GARDENS.    By  Henry  Griscom  Parsons 209 

ADDRESS.     By  Richmond  Pearson  Hobson 214 

EDUCATION  FOR  SOUTHERN  WOMEN.     By  Miss  Alice  Lloyd 220 


THURSDAY  EVENING  SESSION. 

LEARNING  FROM  OUR  NEIGHBORS.     By  Edwin  Mims 229 

INFORMAL  ADDRESSES.     By  St.  Glair  McKelway 241 

By  A.  C.  True 242 

By  George  W.  Gordon 243 

By  Josephus  Daniels 243 

INCIDENTAL  EVENTS 244 

TREASURER'S  REPORT 248 

OFFICERS 249 

REGISTERED  MEMBERS 250 

APPENDIX. 
FIELD  REPORTS  OF  THE   SOUTHERN  EDUCATION  BOARD. 

EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH: 

I.     Citizens  Meetings  and  Organization 263 

II.     School  Houses 268 

III.  Rural  School  Libraries 269 

IV.  School  Consolidation 271 

V.     Rural  High  Schools 273 

VI.     Industrial  Education 274 

VII.     Improvement  of  the  Teaching  Force 276 

VIII.     Public  School  Supervision 279 

IX.     Compulsory  Attendance  Laws 282 

X.     Literature  of  Education 283 

XI.  The  Educational  Center 287 

XII.  Law  and  Finance 293 

XIII.  The  Concord  of  Intelligence 295 

XIV.  Benefits  to  the  Negroes   .  298 


Conference  for  Education  in 
the  South 

PINEHURST  MEETING,  1907 


OPENING  SESSION 


TUESDAY  MORNING,  APRIL  9ra. 

The  Tenth  Annual  Conference  for  Education  in  the  South 
met  in  the  Auditorium  of  the  Carolina  Hotel,  at  Pinehurst, 
N.  C.,  on  Tuesday,  April  9th,  at  10:30  o'clock  A.  M.  In  the 
absence  of  the  President  and  Vice-President,  Dr.  S.  C.  Mitchell, 
of  Richmond,  Va.,  the  Chairman  of  the  Executive  Committee  of 
the  Conference,  called  the  meeting  to  order  and  introduced  the 
Hon.  Robert  B.  Glenn,  Governor  of  North  Carolina. 

GOVERNOR  GLENN. 

The  Governor  then  came  forward  on  the  platform  and  wel- 
comed the  members  of  the  Conference  to  the  State  in  an  address 
replete  with  expressions  of  hospitality.  Referring  to  the  far 
reaching  influence  of  the  Conference  and  the  importance  of  its 
work,  he  spoke  of  the  people  of  his  State  as  independent  and 
self-reliant,  following  their  own  convictions  in  their  educational 
system,  as  in  other  things,  and  accepting  encouragement  from 
other  sources  only  in  the  spirit  of  friendly  co-operation. 

He  dwelt  particularly  upon  the  material  prosperity  of  the 
South  and  the  increasing  resources  to  be  applied  to  educational 
purposes.  The  time  had  come  for  the  recognition  of  this.  "Pos- 
sumus ' '  \vas  the  watchword  of  the  hour ;  "we  are  able ' '  was  the 
truth  to  \vhich  the  people  were  awakening.  In  illustration  he 
gave  the  following  impressive  figures: 


6          CONFERENCE  FOR  EDUCATION  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

"Twenty  years  ago  the  South  had  $21,000,000  invested  in  cot- 
ton mills;  to-day  $150,000,000;  then  667,000  spindles  were  oper- 
ated; to-day  9,760,000  spindles;  then  our  farms  raised  431,000, 
000  bushels  of  grain ;  now  over  2,000,000,000. 

"In  1890  the  capital  invested  in  all  kinds  of  manufacturing  in 
the  South  was  $695,000,000 ;  now  $1,700,000,000 ;  then  the  value 
of  manufactured  products  was  $917,589,000;  now  $2,225,- 
000,000,  with  a  cotton  crop  valued  at  $675,000,000  and  60,000,000 
gallons  of  oil. 

"In  1880  the  output  of  pig  iron  was  397,000  tons,  now  3,500,- 
000  tons;  then  6,000,000  tons  of  coal;  now  83,000,000. 

"From  1880  to  1900  the  increase  of  agriculture  for  the  whole 
country  was  65  per  cent. ;  for  the  South  72  per  cent. ;  in  manu- 
facturing, for  the  country,  242  per  cent. ;  for  the  South,  348  per 
cent.;  the  increase  in  the  value  of  manufactures  for  the  whole 
country,  135  per  cent. ;  for  the  South,  215  per  cent. 

"In  1870  North  Carolina  was  the  poorest  State  in  the  Union, 
with  a  valuation  of  260  million  dollars  and  a  population  of  nine 
hundred  thousand;  now  it  has  a  valuation  of  $1,000,000,000, 
and  a  population  of  2,000,000,000.  From  1870  to  the  present 
time  the  debt  has  been  reduced  from  $40,000,000,  and  the  State 
is  out  of  debt  with  its  bonds  selling  at  high  premium,  and  money 
in  the  Treasury  sufficient  to  cancel  every  one  of  them. 

"Eighty-five  per  cent,  of  the  cotton  in  the  world,  75  per  cent, 
of  all  the  tobacco  and  99  per  cent,  of  all  the  peanuts  are  raised 
in  North  Carolina,  and  this  production  represents  about  one-half 
of  what  the  State  is  capable  of  raising.  In  revenue  taxes  alone 
$4,994,000,968  has  been  paid  for  tobacco. 

' '  The  State  has  more  mills  than  any  other  in  the  country,  and 
it  is  third  in  regard  to  spindles  and  looms  being  operated,  in 
1905  there  being  47,000,500  of  the  former,  and  2,215,000  of  the 
latter.  Between  1890  and  1905  the  value  of  manufactured 
products  was  increased  from  $40,075,000  to  over  $100,000,000; 
more  than  600,000  bales  of  cotton  being  used  or  more  than  the 
State  produced.  North  Carolina  is  also  the  second  furniture 
State  in  the  Union,  High  Point  being  next  in  importance  to 
Grand  Rapids,  with  a  total  of  $2,470,000,000  invested  in  this 
equipment. 


BY    GOVERNOR 

"In  1906  the  South  added  $7,300,000  per  day,  or  $2,690,- 
000,000,  each  year  to  the  wealth  of  the  world ;  England  adding 
only  $7,000,000  per  week.  The  total  value  of  gold  and  silver 
production  for  five  years  ending  at  that  period  was  $2,578,852,- 
000;  the  total  value  of  cotton  production  for  the  same  period 
$2,974,000,000." 

At  the  close  of  Governor  Glenn's  address  the  Chairman  ex- 
pressed in  feeling  terms  his  profound  regret  at  the  absence  of 
Mr.  Robert  C.  Ogden,  the  President  of  the  Conference,  whose 
personality  he  esteemed  the  soul  of  the  gathering.  He  spoke 
of  Mr.  Ogden  as  one  of  the  chief  benefactors  of  the  South 
since  the  Civil  War,  and  indicated  that  he  would  be  regarded 
along  with  Horace  Mann  and  J.  L.  M.  Curry  as  a  creative  force 
in  the  working  out  of  an  orderly  system  of  education  in  our 
national  democracy.  He  dwelt  upon  the  rare  felicity  with  which 
Mr.  Ogden  was  accustomed  to  preside  on  such  occasions,  and 
voiced  the  hope  of  all  that  Mr.  Ogden 's  strength  would  speedily 
be  restored.  The  Chairman  then  read  the  following  letter  from 
the  President  of  the  Conference,  Mr.  Robert  C.  Ogden : 

NEW  YORK,  April  6,  1907. 
Dr.   S.    C.   Mitchell,   Chairman   Executive   Committee,    Conference   for 

Education  in  the  South,  Pinehurst,  N.  C.: 

Dear  Dr.  Mitchell, — It  is  a  painful  and  unwelcome  task  to  give  you 
official  notice  that  it  will  be  impossible  for  me  to  attend  the  Tenth 
Conference  for  Education  in  the  South,  which  will  assemble  at  Pine- 
hurst,  North  Carolina,  on  Tuesday  the  9th  inst. 

In  my  judgment,  the  present  Conference  should  take  rank  far  above 
any  of  its  predecessors  in  the  creation  of  ideals  and  formulation  of 
policies  that  in  turn  should  influence  every  State  represented  to  greater 
enthusiasm  and  larger  efficiency.  My  personal  disappointment,  because 
of  present  limitations,  is  proportionate  to  my  faith  and  hope  in  what 
will  be  accomplished  on  the  present  occasion.  Extraordinary  progress 
in  many  directions  is  full  of  inspiration.  The  great  undone  margin 
is  a  challenge  to  patriotic  self-sacrifice  and  lofty  endeavor. 

In  the  presence  of  the  ability,  conscience  and  devotion  represented 
in  the  Conference,  a  President's  message  would  be  superfluous. 

Allow  me  to  suggest  that  the  present  is  the  opportune  time  for  me 
to  retire  from  the  office  with  which  the  Conference  has  honored  me  for 
so  many  years.  Very  respectfully, 

ROBERT  C.  OGDEN. 


8  THE   TASK  OF  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD. 

On  motion  of  Dr.  Francis  P.  Venable,  of  Chapel  Hill,  North 
Carolina,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  express  to  Mr.  Ogden 
the  regrets  of  the  Conference  at  his  enforced  absence  and  the 
wish  for  his  speedy  restoration.  The  Chairman  appointed  on 
this  committee:  Messrs.  Francis  P.  Venable,  George  A.  Plimp- 
ton and  George  R.  Denny. 

In  response  to  the  address  of  welcome,  Dr.  S.  C.  Mitchell 
spoke  as  follows: 

THE  TASK  OF  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD. 

BY  SAMUEL  CHILES  MITCHELL. 

We  are  accustomed  to  speak  of  the  Southern  Problem;  but 
would  it  not  be  well  to  resolve  this  large  and  general  term 
back  into  its  constituent  elements,  with  a  view  to  making  our  pur- 
pose in  education  more  definite  and  our  efforts  more  concrete? 
The  Southern  Problem  is  not  a  strategic  point,  not  a  Bloody 
Angle,  not  a  single  fortress,  which  can  be  carried  by  one  bril- 
liant assault,  as  we  sometimes  seem  to  fancy;  but  it  is  rather  a 
series  of  innumerable  ganglia,  each  one  the  center  of  salutary 
potency,  economic,  social,  and  intellectual.  These  ganglia  are 
the  myriads  of  neighborhoods  which  dot  the  wide  expanse  of 
the  South. 

This  educational  movement  has  displayed  rare  generalship  in 
marshaling  masses  of  people,  in  enlisting  the  leaders  of  thought 
in  the  several  States,  and  in  rendering  more  effective  all  educa- 
tional agencies.  It  has  brought  to  light  the  facts  as  to  South- 
ern schools;  it  has  lifted  education  here  into  national  promi- 
nence; it  has  brought  encouragement  to  every  isolated  man  or 
woman,  who,  in  his  or  her  sphere,  was  sincerely  making  for 
progress ;  it  has  re-enforced  Southern  opinion  and  promoted 
conciliation  among  all  sections  of  our  common  country.  These 
are  great  gains  and  they  will  abide.  But  has  not  the  time  come 
for  another  turn  to  be  taken  in  our  advance  ?  Hitherto  the  State 
as  a  unit  has  been  in  the  main  our  objective.  May  we  not  with 
profit  consider  singly  the  needs  of  the  neighborhoods  in  these 
vast  rural  commonwealths  ?  If  we  can  lay  hold  of  these  separate 


BY    SAMUEL     CHILES    MITCHELL.  9 

centers  of  influence,  whose  name  is  legion ;  if  we  can  organize? 
the  potential  forces  latent  in  each  community,  may  we  not  get 
the  key  to  the  whole  situation,  and  by  developing  a  compact 
citizens'  organization  in  each  locality,  bring  into  alignment  for 
progress  all  the  forces  of  our  democracy1?  Is  not  then  the  local 
school  improvement  league  the  corner-stone  of  the  symmetrical 
and  enduring  superstructure  of  education  which  we  are  striving 
to  rear? 

CHURCH    AND    COURT-HOUSE,    THE    TWO   FOCI    OF    THE    COMMUNITY. 

To-day  the  rural  community  in  the  South  has  two  foci— the 
court-house  and  the  church.  Is  it  not  possible  that  these  two 
centers  of  influence,  which  are  to  some  extent  divisive,  can  be 
embraced  to  advantage  in  a  larger  unit— the  school?  Society 
is  bigger  than  both  the  church  and  the  court;  and  the  school 
stands  for  that  social  organism  which  includes  State  and  church, 
court  and  commerce,  home  and  factory. 

Was  not  something  lacking  in  a  society  where  church  an  1 
court  attempted  to  fulfill  all  communal  functions,  as  the  two 
lobes  of  the  brain?  The  court  stood  for  politics  as  well  as  jus- 
tice. It  was  also  to  the  horse-trader  what  the  red  flag  is  to  the 
auction.  Court-day  was  the  carnival  of  the  partisan  orator  who 
was  seeking  the  suffrage  of  the  sovereign  people. 

The  South  is  rich  in  sentiment,  especially  in  religious  senti- 
ment. It  constitutes  our  chief  asset.  While  we  rejoice  in  this 
richness  of  sentiment,  affording  as  it  does  a  mellow  light  for  -ill 
our  life,  it  is  nevertheless  true  that  much  of  this  spiritual 
energy  is  not  turned  to  practical  account.  A  wise  man  recently 
remarked,  "The  largest  force  latent  in  the  South  is  the  unused 
religious  sentiment."  Electricity  had  been  diffused  throughout 
the  atmosphere  from  primordial  times;  but  Franklin's  tiny 
thread,  by  bringing  this  elusive  agency  to  practical  uses,  has 
transformed  the  world.  So  with  our  religious  sentiment.  In 
the  South  to-day  there  are  exhaustless  stores  of  electric  energy 
in  every  great  denomination,  which,  if  rightly  drawn  upon,  may 
work  wonders  in  transforming  social,  moral,  and  racial  condi- 
tions. With  such  reservoirs  of  religious  sentiment  as  we  have, 
it  becomes  our  primary  duty  to  open  up  practical  channels  >f 


10  THE  TASK  OF  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD. 

activity  in  which  it  can  flow  out  beneficently  to  all  mankind. 
The  cause  of  the  child  in  groping  for  the  door  of  opportunity 
through  the  school;  the  improvement  of  economic  conditions  as 
regards  the  farm,  the  factory,  and  the  home ;  the  abolition  of  the 
saloon,  which  paralyzes  thrift  and  increases  sorrow ;  the  duty  to 
uplift  the  negroes  among  us  and  to  find  some  rational  ground 
for  the  two  races  dwelling  upon  our  soil ;  to  strengthen  our  edu- 
cational institutions  with  a  view  to  the  advancement  of  truth 
and  the  service  of  mankind;  to  visit  with  hope  the  neglected 
masses  who  are  without  an  open  vision,  and  to  kindle  in  their 
breasts  a  consciousness  of  the  fact  that  they  may  become  par- 
takers of  the  divine  nature;  to  make  known  to  heathen  people 
Jesus '  way  of  thinking  and  living  and  working ;  to  project  civic 
ideals  and  to  energize  the  public  conscience  in  their  attainment ; 
to  meet  the  immigrant  at  the  port  and  to  welcome  him  to  a  new 
world's  work ;  to  cement  the  affections  of  all  sections  of  our  com- 
mon country  and  to  make  their  loyalty  instinct  with  nation- 
ality—these are  some  of  the  practical  activities  to  which  the 
religious  sentiment  of  the  South  is  being  more  and  more  largely 
put. 

In  seeking  to  make  the  school  a  center  of  community  life,  the 
point  of  radiation  of  progressive  ideas  and  influences,  we  are 
only  reverting  to  the  oft-repeated  wishes  of  Thomas  Jefferson. 
He  wished  to  divide  the  county  into  wards,  after  the  order  of  the 
New  England  township.  "As  Cato  then  concluded  every  speech 
with  the  words,  'Carthago  delenda  est,'  so  do  I  every  opinion 
with  the  injunction:  'Divide  the  counties  into  wards!'  '  Does 
not  the  school  offer  the  readiest  means  of  organizing  community 
life?  The  local  league  may  thus  become  to  the  South  what  the 
township  is  to  New  England  and  what  the  People's  Assembly 
is  to  the  canton  of  Glarus  in  Switzerland,  an  organ  of  democ- 
racy in  its  most  vital  form. 

ADVANTAGES  OF  SCHOOL  LEAGUES. 

Many  are  the  advantages  of  community  effort: 
(1)  Local  School  Improvement  Leagues  will  become  recruit- 
ing stations.     They  will  discover  men  and  women  of  initiative 
and  directive  power  that  might  otherwise  escape  notice.     They 


BY    SAMUEL     CHILES    MITCHELL.  11 

will  set  free  the  energy  in  the  mass  of  our  people  as  well  as  in 
the  advantaged  man.  All  the  people,  if  united  in  a  noble  pur- 
pose, can  accomplish  far  more  than  the  most  transcendent  gen- 
ius, even  Napoleon  himself,  if  he  attempts  it  single-handed.  Th-j 
spirit  of  this  whole  educational  movement  condenses  itself  into 
the  one  word,  Co-operation. 

(2)  The  people  on  the  spot  know  better  the  needs  of  the  neigh- 
borhood than  leaders  at  a  distance.     Understanding  the  temper 
of  their  people,  citizens  locally  can  best  supply  them.    There  aro 
many  Souths.     Conditions  in  Virginia  are  far  different  from 
those  in  Mississippi.     If  States  differ,  communities  vary.     Any 
workable   programme   of   education   in   the   South   must  be   so 
elastic  and  inclusive  as  to  adapt  itself  readily  to  the  differing 
needs  of  each  individual  neighborhood,  whether  advanced   or 
backward,  whether  rural  or  urban,  whether  dominantly  white  or 
black. 

(3)  Through  the  local  school  leagues  you  enlist  the  construc- 
tive interest  of  all  the  citizens.    The  distinctive  thing  about  the 
present  educational  revival  is  the  part  played  by  the  citizens,  as 
distinguished  from  the  teachers  and  officials.    This  appears  upon 
every  hand,  especially  in  such  a  gathering  as  this.     It  was  the 
keynote  in  Virginia's  May  Campaign  of  1905,  which  did  so  much 
to  stir  the  depths  of  society  in  behalf  of  the  school.    What  we 
aim  at  primarily  is  not  to  construct  a  new  curriculum  for  the 
college,  not  to  devise  a  completer  course  of  studies  in  the  school, 
but  to  arouse  all  the  people  of  the  South  to  realize  that  the  school 
is  the  prime  factor  in  progress ;  that  popular  government  without 
universal  education  is  a  farce;  that  economic  and  social  efficien- 
cy depend  upon  the  training  of  the  children;  that  the  Soufci's 
prestige  in  national  councils  can  be  regained,  not  by  partisan 
politics,  not  by  sectional  prejudices,  but  only  by  an  enlightened 
and  aggressive  public  opinion,  which  embraces  within  its  view 
all  the  interests  of  our  common  country.     Our  first  aim,  there- 
fore, is  the  citizen  rather  than  the  pupil.     It  is  necessary  fo 
reach  the  community,  and  that  is  best  done  through  the  school. 
In  seeking  to  energize  democracy  in  the  South,  the  school  .:s 
merely  a  means  to  an  end.     To  stir  the  interest  of  citizens,  to 


12  THE   TASK  OF  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD. 

enlist  their  resources,  to  vitalize  every  neighborhood,  is  the  ob- 
ject of  the  local  school  league. 

(4)  The  local  school  league  gives  vitality  to  the  community's 
will.    What  the  brain  is  to  the  body,  that  organization  is  to  dif- 
fuse social  energy.     Suggestive  is  the  title  of  a  recent  book, 
' '  Why  the  Mind  has  a  Body. ' '    Too  long  in  the  South  the  neigh- 
borhood has  lacked  a  nucleating  center  for  social  progress,  which 
the  school  is  admirably  adapted  to  supply.     It  is  with  pleasure 
that  I  emphasize  the  advantage  of  community  effort  in  the  Stat<- 
of  North  Carolina,  which,  unlike  many  other  States  in  the  South, 
is  to-day  really  developing  hamlet  industries.     Instead  of  con- 
gregating its  factories  in  a  few  cities,  it  is  planting  mills  at  th<>. 
falls  of  every  stream  and  raising  up  factories  adjacent  to  the 
fields. 

(5)  The  whole  problem  of  the  South  is  found  in  miniature  in 
the  neighborhood,  as  the  sky  globes  itself  in  a  drop  of  dew.    Th? 
reclamation  of  exhausted  soils,  the  improvement  of  roads,  the 
development  of    industries,    the  betterment    of  the    home,  the 
growth  of  public  libraries,  the  breaking  down  of  barriers  in  the 
interest  of  real  democracy,  the  necessity  for  unity  of  action  upon 
the  part  of  all  the  people  in  behalf  of  social  progress,  the  frank 
discussion  of  every  public  issue— all  these  aspects  of  Southern 
life  head  up  in  the  local  league,  which,  through  the  school,  tries 
to  give  efficiency  to  the  community's  will  in  the  interest  of  pro- 
gress.    Thus  the  scope  of  the  school  is  far  wider  than  what  we 
ordinarily  mean  by  the  term  education.    The  school  is  to  be  the 
agency  through  which  the  economic,  social,  intellectual,  politi- 
cal, racial,  and  religious  conditions  in  the  neighborhood  are  to 
be  transformed  according  to  the  spirit  of  order,  progress,  and 
national  well-being. 

That  it  is  comparatively  easy  to  organize  and  maintain  such 
local  leagues,  workers  in  many  States  can  testify.  For  instance, 
in  Virginia  there  are  among  the  white  people  about  three  hun- 
dred school  leagues.  The  Richmond  one  has  nearly  a  thousand 
members.  The  league  at  Newport  News  publishes  its  annual 
proceedings,  as  do  many  others.  A  parallel  series  of  leagues  is 
now  being  called  forth  among  the  colored  people,  and  this 
effort  at  self-help  upon  their  part  deserves  to  be  encouraged  in 


BY    SAMUEL     CHILES    MITCHELL.  13 

every  way;  for  it  promises  large  results  in  self-sacrifice,  public 
spirit,  self-reliance,  and  initiative.  Among  the  white  people, 
women  have  been  exceedingly  active  and  successful  in  organ- 
izing and  energizing  local  leagues.  What  is  more  natural  and 
necessary  than  that  the  mothers  should  take  a  keen  interest  in 
beautifying  the  school,  in  sympathizing  with  the  teacher,  in 
securing  a  library,  in  quickening  the  attendance  of  all  the  chil- 
dren in  the  neighborhood  upon  the  school,  in  urging  local  taxa- 
tion in  behalf  of  a  longer  term  and  better  instruction,  in  up- 
holding the  superintendent,  and  in  molding  public  sentiment  in 
the  interest  of  education? 

These  school  leagues  have  been  the  mainspring  of  power  in 
the  educational  revival  in  Virginia.  I  am  confident  that  such  a 
league  can  be  planted  in  every  community;  that  these  can  be 
compacted  into  a  State-wide  citizens'  organization  with  its  cen- 
tral executive  committee,  forming  a  clearing  house  of  educa- 
tional ideas  and  enthusiasm,  and  with  its  annual  convention, 
in  which  all  the  local  leagues  shall  find  representation  and  re- 
ceive inspiration.  If  we  can  bend  the  energies  of  this  wide- 
spread movement  to  the  task  of  organizing  the  neighborhood 
into  such  a  league,  we  shall  impart  an  impulse  to  Southern  life 
of  incalculable  value ;  for  every  community  so  organized  is  cap- 
able of  achieving  noble  civic  purposes  impossible  otherwise. 
Such  a  course  throbs  with  the  spirit  of  democracy,  as  it  makes  an 
appeal  to  all  the  people  in  the  most  vital  way.  It  touches  true 
self-interest  and  begets  self-service ;  it  roots  itself  in  the  locality, 
according  to  the  genius  of  democracy;  it  addresses  itself  to  the 
will  and  conscience  of  the  community  and  thus  fulfills  in  itself 
an  educative  purpose.  These  school  improvement  leagues  put 
back  of  the  State's  official  machinery  all  the  affection  and  con- 
structive energy  of  the  people. 

THE  ETHICS  OP  DEMOCRACY. 

In  undertaking  seriously  the  task  of  the  neighborhood,  we 
shall  come  to  understand  the  true  ethics  of  demoracy— civil 
rights,  the  supremacy  of  reason,  and  the  sense  of  brotherhood. 

(1)  Political  rights.  Democracy  at  first  appeared  as  a  protest 
against  the  tyranny  of  kings.  Hence  the  emphasis  fell  in  the 


14  THE  TASK  OF  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD. 

beginning  upon  civil  rights  and  political  power  for  the  people. 
Liberty  flashed  forth  upon  the  world's  view  as  an  avenging 
angel  against  monarchs.  In  William  the  Silent  it  struck 
off  from  Holland  the  fetters  of  King  Philip,  and  the  Dutch 
Republic  ensued.  In  Cromwell  it  beheaded  King  Charles  and 
the  Commonwealth  came  into  being.  In  Washington  it  beat 
back  from  the  colonies  the  aggressions  of  King  George,  and  the 
American  Republic  began  its  benign  career.  In  Robespierre  it 
guillotined  King  Louis,  and  the  French  Republic  started  upon 
its  world-crusade.  In  the  eighteenth  century,  democracy 
seemed  to  concern  itself  only  with  the  State.  In  the  nineteenth, 
its  influence  began  to  work  like  leaven  in  society.  In  the  twen- 
tieth, it  is  destined  to  embody  a  new  ideal  of  humanity.  The 
Renaissance  was  the  democratizing  of  learning.  The  Reforma- 
tion was  the  democratizing  of  religion.  The  French  Revolution 
was  the  democratizing  of  the  State.  The  twentieth  century 
is  to  witness  the  democratizing  of  society  as  regards  property, 
education,  and  privilege. 

(2)  The  supremacy  of  reason.  Democracy  means  government 
by  discussion.  The  sovereignty  of  the  people  contemplates  the 
supremacy  of  reason.  Politics  is  the  servant  of  public  opinion. 
Every  question  is  to  be  settled,  not  by  fiat  of  a  despot,  but  by 
combining  the  judgments  of  a  majority.  Hence,  democracy  is 
primarily  educative.  It  challenges  the  intellect,  it  quickens  the 
conscience,  it  energizes  the  will.  From  this  it  follows  that  the 
universal  enlightenment  of  its  citizens  is  the  first  duty  of  democ- 
racy. This  obligation  even  transcends  duty.  It  is  a  necessity. 
The  right  to  develop  the  capacity  of  every  child  cannot  be 
called  in  question,  and  the  duty  to  do  so  is  the  primal  instinct  of 
democracy. 

In  a  democracy  a  few  hold  office,  but  all  may  have  influence. 
Often  men  without  office  are  more  potent  through  influence  ex- 
erted upon  public  opinion  than  those  who  enjoy  office.  To  the 
youth  of  America  there  is  wonderful  incitement  to  higher  effort 
as  a  result  of  this  universal  invitation  to  power.  In  a  monarchy 
rule  is  invested  in  a  single  king;  in  an  aristocracy,  authority  is 
lodged  in  an  oligarchy  of  nobles;  but  in  a  democracy  every  man 
has  the  right  to  rule,  through  the  ballot,  through  office,  and 


BY    SAMUEL     CHILES    MITCHELL.  15 

through  influence  upon  public  opinion.  The  chief  asset  of  the 
citizen  is,  however,  neither  the  ballot  nor  office,  but  influence. 
At  the  polls  all  men  are  of  the  same  height  and  each  counts 
only  one.  Office  often  fetters,  but  to  influence  no  limit  can  be 
prut.  Sometimes  office  is  the  result  of  manipulation.  But  crea- 
tive influence  is  the  issuance  of  one's  own  inner  worth.  A  man 
of  influence  can  usually  have  office  if  he  wishes  it.  It  is  not 
always  true  that  a  man  in  office  has  creative  influence,  though 
office,  like  marriage,  is  honorable  in  all.  Democracy,  then,  ap- 
peals to  the  initiative  of  every  citizen  and  bestows  prizes  upon 
all  merit.  It  means  a  chance  for  every  man  and  power  in  pro- 
portion to  personality.  Under  democracy,  greatness  is  neither 
exclusive  nor  precarious.  Every  man  counts  according  to  his 
civic  ability. 

It  is  a  fortunate  circumstance  that  we  have  been  governed, 
not  by  priests  nor  by  soldiers,  but  by  lawyers,  men  steeped  in 
the  spirit  of  justice.  Our  fathers  thought,  however,  that  they 
were  establishing  a  government  not  of  men,  but  of  laws.  The 
fact  is,  we  are  governed  not  by  law,  but  by  respect  for  law. 
Whatever  impairs  this  sensitive  respect  for  law,  strikes  at  the 
heart  of  all  our  institutions.  It  is  from  this  standpoint  that 
we  see  the  enormity  of  the  crime  of  lynching,  which  stabs  fatally 
the  majesty  of  the  law.  Lynching  is  the  greatest  menace  to 
State  integrity  in  the  South  to-day. 

(3)  A  sense  of  brotherhood.  Democracy  implies  more  than 
liberty,  more  than  equality.  It  involves  a  sense  of  brotherhood. 
Kingship  is  competitive.  Democracy  is  co-operative.  It  is  the 
mutualization  of  government.  The  initial  impulse  of  democracy- 
is,  "I  am  my  brother's  keeper."  Monarchy  is  paternalism. 
Democracy  is  fraternalism.  It  has  faith  in  the  average  man. 
"God  has  shown  me  that  I  should  call  no  man  common."  In 
democracy  there  are  three  elements— right,  reason  and  sympa- 
thy, but  the  greatest  of  these  is  sympathy. 

THE  SOUTH  *S   THREE  LINES  OF  ADVANCE  IN  EDUCATION. 

It  is,  therefore,  in  keeping  with  the  ethics  of  democracy  that 
the  South  is  advancing  in  education  along  three  different  lines. 
First,  in  the  education  of  the  neglected  white  child.  The  "poor 


16  THE  TASK  OF  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD. 

whites"  are  an  unexploited  asset  of  the  South.  Under  the  old 
order  these  people  had  no  place.  They  were  ground  between 
the  upper  and  nether  mill-stone,  between  aristocracy  and  slav- 
ery. Yet  these  hardy  people  lacked  neither  capacity  nor  cour- 
age. They  have  lacked  inspiration  and  opportunity.  The  pub- 
lic school  is  the  door  to  a  new  day  for  them,  skulking  in  the 
recesses  of  the  mountain,  or  swept  together  in  the  tenement 
houses  about  the  newly  built  cotton  mill.  Infinite  is  the  potency 
of  this  numerous  class  of  our  citizenship,  if  we  fit  them  for  in- 
dustrial and  political  efficiency. 

Secondly,  the  South  is  advancing  in  the  democratizing  of  the 
ideals  of  our  colleges.  The  classical  colleges  of  the  South  from 
1820  to  1860  did  noble  service,  and  I  cherish  the  memory  of  the 
self-sacrificing  men  who  taught  the  youth  in  them.  Yet  it  is 
plain,  now,  that  socially  and  politically  they  failed  in  leader- 
ship. Fearless  discussion  of  the  then  prevailing  conditions  in 
this  section,  the  freest  recital  of  the  large  and  liberal  movements 
taking  place  elsewhere  in  the  great  world,  the  closest  analysis 
of  the  economic  factors  involved  in  slavery,  and,  in  a  word,  the 
interpretation  of  the  facts  at  one's  front  door,  would  have  been 
of  priceless  value  to  our  fathers  at  the  crisis  of  national  destiny, 
if  the  colleges  here  had  been  ready  to  give  such  help.  Classicism 
acted  as  a  potion  to  soothe,  to  divert  attention  from  conditions 
too  stern  for  men  willingly  to  gaze  upon  them.  The  social 
sciences  could  have  been  as  a  searchlight  turned  upon  the  over- 
hung path  before  them.  In  the  light  of  this  tragic  experience,  it 
is  plain  that,  while  our  colleges  will  still  cherish  the  classics, 
they  should  become  more  and  more  scientific  and  sociological. 
It  is  gratifying  to  note  that  our  institutions  are  rapidly  adjust- 
ing their  courses  to  these  pressing  needs  of  our  people. 

Thirdly,  the  South  is  advancing  in  the  training  of  negroes. 
Slavery  was  a  school.  In  it  the  negro  learned  the  lessons  of  obe- 
dience, industry,  and  withal  the  habit  of  civilization.  It  failed 
adequately  to  discipline  the  will  and  inform  the  conscience,  the 
two  essentials  for  citizenship  in  a  democracy,  where  self-con- 
trol and  moral  initiative  are  demanded.  The  races  are  now 
segregated,  and  are  seeking  to  advance  separately  along  parallel 
lines.  Hence  the  school  is  the  main  agency  for  training  the 


BY    SAMUEL     CHILES     MITCHELL.  17 

negro  in  thrift,  in  the  care  of  the  home,  in  respect  for  law,  and 
in  moral  initiative. 

All  of  these  three  educational  advances,  proceeding  as  they 
do  simultaneously,  constitute  in  the  South  one  of  the  finest  ex- 
periments in  progress  and  humanity  that  the  world  has  ever 
seen.  The  difficulties  are  great,  but  the  encouragements  are 
many.  An  instinctive  sense  of  duty  urges  us  on,  while  the 
glowing  ideal  of  democracy  beckons  us  forward.  In  this  pro- 
gressive effort,  the  purpose  of  the  Southern  people  is  fixed.  In 
their  achievements  they  have  the  sympathy  of  all  patriotic  men, 
and  they  are  nerved  to  their  task  both  by  their  knowledge  of  the 
substantial  benefits  which  will  accrue  to  their  children's  chil- 
dren, and  by  their  sense  of  responsibility  in  giving  to  the  forces 
resident  in  our  democracy  their  highest  efficiency  in  economic 
development,  social  order,  racial  adjustment,  and  national 
power. 


Announcement  having  been  made  of  the  absence  of  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Conference,  it  was  voted  that  Prof.  Joseph  S.  Stew- 
art, of  Athens,  Georgia,  be  chosen  temporary  secretary. 

On  motion  it  was  voted  that  a  committee  be  appointed  to  draft 
resolutions  commemorative  of  the  life  and  public  services  of  Dr. 
Charles  D.  Mclver.  The  Chairman  appointed  Messrs'.  J.  E. 
Russell,  Edwin  A.  Alderman,  Frederick  W.  Moore  and  H.  C. 
Gunnels. 

The  Chairman  then  introduced  Mr.  Edgar  Gardner  Murphy, 
Secretary  of  the  Southern  Education  Board,  who  presented  a 
historical  sketch  of  the  work  of  the  Board.  Mr.  Murphy  ex- 
pressed regrets  at  being  unable  to  read  his  paper  and  asked  that 
Dr.  Edwin  A.  Alderman  might  do  this  in  his  place.  Dr.  Alder- 
man assented,  preceding  the  paper  with  a  few  remarks  con- 
cerning the  sketch  and  the  general  subject  of  the  discussion. 


18  THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

THE  SOUTHERN  EDUCATION  BOARD. 

BY  EDGAR  GARDNER  MURPHY,  MONTGOMERY,  ALABAMA. 

It  was  in  this  State  of  North  Carolina,  at  Winston-Salem,  just 
six  years  ago,  that  the  Southern  Education  Board  was  called  into 
existence. 

For  three  years  the  Conference  for  Education  in  the  South 
had  held  its  annual  sessions  in  West  Virginia,  at  Capon  Springs, 
It  had  been  a  small  informal  company;  but  its  seriousness  and 
its  intelligence  made  its  faith  persistent.  Because  it  was  serious, 
its  talk,  by  an  instinctive  necessity,  had  to  do  with  work;  and 
because  it  was  intelligent,  its  work  sought  the  form  and  the 
force  of  executive  organization. 

When,  therefore,  at  Winston-Salem  this  body— this  informal 
Conference  for  Education — resolved  that  an  executive  board 
should  be  brought  into  existence,  it  obeyed  no  artificial  passion 
for  "getting  up  things."  Its  action  was  from  out  of  the  inner 
necessities  of  the  case.  It  was  inevitable— a  growth  by  the  logic 
of  nature  and  out  of  the  very  soil  of  the  situation. 

The  earlier  Conferences  at  Capon  Springs  were  called  Con- 
ferences for  "Christian"  Education  in  the  South.  A  number 
of  those  who  attended  were  largely  interested  in  institutions 
under  denominational  auspices.  A  number  of  them  were  espe- 
cially interested  in  the  education  of  the  negro.  These  charac- 
teristics of  certain  forces  in  the  Conference  were  matters  of  fact ; 
they  were  not  expressions  of  policy.  That  is  to  say,  there  was  no 
exclusion  of  secular  education,  or  of  white  education ;  both  wero 
consciously  in  mind.  And  yet,  at  the  first,  the  interests  of  de- 
nominational education,  and  the  problems  of  negro  education  are 
prominently  in  evidence.  They  are  thus  in  evidence,  however, 
only  in  the  sense  that  they  are  natural  pre-occupations  rather 
than  hard  and  inflexible  prepossessions. 

There  were,  moreover,  other  factors  in  the  Conference,  factors 
in  which  the  interests  of  white  education  and  of  "secular"  edu- 
cation were  uppermost,  uppermost  in  this  case  too— not  as  hard 
and  inflexible  prepossessions  but  as  natural  pre-occupations. 
These  contrasted  elements  of  interest  came  into  contact — the 


BY    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  19 

workers  in  negro  education  with  the  workers  in  white  educa- 
tion— the  workers  in  the  schools  of  the  Church  with  the  workers 
in  the  schools  of  the  State;  into  a  contact  which  brought  under- 
standing, and  into  an  understanding  which  brought  respect. 
Visions  broadened.  Horizons  were  enlarged.  Changes  followed, 
not  through  exclusion,  but  through  comprehension.  Though 
there  has  always  been  frank  and  sympathetic  discussion  of  the 
various  phases  of  negro  education,  yet  the  very  first  resolution 
of  the  second  Conference  declares  that  "the  education  of  the 
white  race  in  the  South  is  "the  pressing  and  imperative  need.'' 
We  note,  moreover,  that  in  the  title  of  the  Conference,  the  word 
' '  Christian ' '  is  omitted.  The  change  is  made  with  no  desire,  how- 
ever, to  ignore  the  interests  of  religious  education,  but  with  the 
purpose  of  including  with  an  added  emphasis,  the  interests  of 
the  common  schools  of  our  rural  population. 

While  these  changes  lie  upon  the  surface,  they  leave  undis- 
turbed the  moral  unity  beneath.  The  various  forces  within  the 
Conference  drew  nearer  together.  Each  group  of  men  and  wo- 
men seemed  to  need  the  other,  and  seemed  to  know  that  need. 
This  knowledge  of  their  mutual  need  found  expression.  Ex- 
pression brought  response,  and  response  issued  in  co-operation. 
The  Conference  became  of  one  mind,  its  field  one  field,  its  work 
one  work,  its  cause  one  cause — the  South — the  over-burdened 
province  of  the  one  country— the  South,  and  all  her  millions  of 
the  untrained. 

I  have  been  speaking  of  the  earlier  Conferences;  those  at 
Capon  Springs.  The  first  gathering  was  due  to  the  suggestion 
from  Dr.  Edward  Abbott,  of  Cambridge,  Mass.,  that  those  in- 
terested in  educational  causes  at  the  South,  should  get  together 
and  discuss  the  situation  as  a  whole.  Bishop  Thomas  U.  Dud- 
ley, of  Kentucky,  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  one  of  the  most  bril- 
liant of  the  alumni  of  the  University  of  Virginia,  was  the  Presi- 
dent. The  President  of  the  second  Conference  was  Dr.  J.  L. 
M.  Curry,  Agent  of  the  Peabody  and  Slater  Boards,  and— in  all 
that  concerned  the  interests  of  popular  education— easily  the 
most  commanding  publicist  of  the  South.  The  third  of  the 
Capon  Springs  Conferences  met  on  the  27th  day  of  June,  1900, 
under  the  Presidency  of  Mr.  Robert  C.  Ogden,  of  New  York. 


20  THE  SOUTHERN  EDUCATION  BOARD. 

Mr.  Ogden,  at  the  unanimous  request,  and  by  the  undivided  and 
indivisible  compulsion,  of  Southern  and  Northern  members  has 
continued  in  service  until  this  day,  as  the  presiding  officer. 
"May  he  long  be  the  last!" 

At  the  outbreak  of  our  Civil  War,  Mr.  Ogden  was  upon  the 
soil  of  a  Southern  State  and  within  the  Southern  lines.  There 
is  a  vague  rumor— I  seem  to  have  heard  it  somewhere— that  he 
escaped.  To  many  of  us,  however,  it  has  seemed  but  a  doubtful 
tale.  It  may  be  that  in  outward  fashion  he  did  return  to  a  home 
and  to  a  business  within  the  North;  but  there  is  a  soul  within 
that  large  and  responsive  heart  which  did  not  return,  which 
could  not  escape — which  has  remained  with  us,  a  citizen  of  our 
adventure,  and  within  the  captivity  of  our  hopes,  our  visions, 
and  our  affections.  There  is  that  within  him  which  has  not  left, 
and  cannot  leave  the  South. 

Among  the  men  who  in  this  Capon  Springs  period  of  our 
history,  also  gave  interest  and  significance  to  these  meetings. 
I  find— in  addition  to  Dr.  Curry  and  Mr.  Ogden— such  names  as 
Dr.  A.  H.  Tuttle  and  Dr.  Charles  W.  Kent,  professors  in  the 
University  of  Virginia ;  Dr.  Julius  H.  Dreher,  President  of  Roa- 
noke  College;  and  from  Washington  and  Lee  University  at 
Lexington,  Va.,  Dr.  J.  A.  Quarles,  and  its  honored  President, 
the  late  William  L.  Wilson,  of  West  Virginia.  Among  the  mem- 
bers from  the  Ncrth— Albert  Shaw,  William  H.  Baldwin,  Jr., 
William  J.  Schieft'elin,  R.  Fulton  Cutting,  Charles  E.  Bigelow, 
and  Everett  P.  Wheeler,  of  New  York;  Dr.  A.  D.  Mayo  and 
Gen.  Guy  V.  Henry,  of  Washington,  and  Dr.  James  McAlister, 
Principal  of  Drexel  Institute,  Philadelphia.  The  continued  life 
of  the  Conference  was  made  possible  largely  through  the  self- 
effacing  devotion  and  the  wise  executive  care  of  Dr.  Hollis 
Burke  Frissell,  Principal  of  Hampton  Institute. 

The  Conference  for  three  years  had  met  annually  at  Capon 
Springs  under  invitation  from  Captain  W.  H.  Sale,  of  the  Capon 
Springs  hotel.  Captain  'Sale  had  generously  acted  as  the  host 
of  the  assembly.  His  death  in  the  year  1900  brought  to  imme- 
diate issue  the  question,  "Shall  the  Conference  go  on?" 

Mr.  Ogden  had  been  elected  President.  "Shall  the  Confer- 
ence go  on?"  His  answer  to  the  question  was  characteristic 


BY    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  21 

of  the  vigorous  sagacity  with  which  he  has  met  so  many  of  the 
problems  of  his  experience;  the  fulfillment  of  that  answer,  and 
the  vindication  of  its  wisdom,  lie  not  only  in  the  collective 
achievement  of  all  the  later  Conferences  for  Education  in  the 
South,  but  in  those  larger  enterprises  of  an  "unofficial  statesman- 
ship" which,  to  the  lasting  and  astonishing  advancement  of 
popular  education  in  our  day,  have  directly  or  indirectly  issued 
from  it. 

Mr.  Ogden  having  said  that  the  Conference  should  meet,  it 
met.  There  was  nothing  else  for  it  to  do.  We,  who  for  certain 
tender  and  gracious  years,  have  also  been  ' '  under  the  command, ' ' 
know  also  how  difficult  is  disobedience.  We  can  appreciate  the 
modest  alacrity  with  which  this  Conference — if  irreverence  may 
be  pardoned— shuffled  back  from  the  edge  of  the  abyss  of  non- 
existence,  and  laying  a  hand  upon  the  collective  heart,  promised 
to  be  good. 

To  speak  seriously,  however,  the  Conference  did  not  wish  to 
die.  It  had  held  life  among  its  settled  anticipations.  It  was 
ready  to  go  on;  and  when  it  heard  from  itself  through  the  ex- 
pressions of  Charles  B.  Aycock,  Charles  W.  Dabney,  Lyman 
Abbott,  George  S.  Dickerman,  and  by  no  means  least,  Charles 
D.  Mclver,  it  had  already  gone  on — its  existence  had  not  only 
been  fixed  by  formal  resolution,  but  self-projected  into  the  pop- 
ular constructive  forces  of  our  country's  intelligence  and  effi- 
ciency. The  cause  seemed  to  be  too  great  to  be  wholly  left  to 
the  inspirational  force  of  an  annual  meeting.  There  seemed  to 
be  a  clear  need  for  an  executive  body,  a  body  which  might  give 
continuous  and  more  general  influence  to  the  purposes  and  poli- 
cies which  the  Conference  had  come  to  represent.  It  was  at 
Winston-Salem,  N.  C.,  therefore,  April  20,  1901,  that  the  follow- 
ing resolutions,  accompanied  by  their  preamble,  were  unani- 
mously adopted: 

"The  Conference  for  Education  in  the  South,  on  the  occasion  of  its 
fourth  annual  meeting,  reaffirms  its  conviction  that  the  overshadowing 
and  supreme  public  need  of  our  time,  as  we  pass  the  threshold  of 
a  new  century,  is  the  education  of  the  children  of  all  the  people. 

"We  declare  such  education  to  be  the  foremost  task  of  our  states- 
manship, and  the  most  worthy  object  of  philanthropy.  With  the 


22  THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

expansion  of  our  population  and  the  growth  of  industry  and  economic 
resources,  we  recognize  in  a  fitting  and  universal  education  and  train- 
ing for  the  home,  for  the  farm  and  the  workshop,  and  for  the  exer- 
cise of  the  duties  of  citizenship,  the  only  salvation  for  our  American 
standards  of  family  and  social  life,  and  the  only  hope  for  the  per- 
petuity of  our  institutions,  founded  by  our  forefathers  on  the  four 
corner-stones  of  intelligence,  virtue,  economic  efficiency  and  capacity 
for  political  self-control. 

"We  recognize  the  value  of  efforts  hitherto  made  to  solve  our  educa- 
tional problems,  both  as  respects  the  methods  to  be  used,  and  also  as  re- 
gards the  sheer  quantity  of  work  to  be  done.  But  we  also  find  in 
the  facts  as  presented  at  the  sessions  of  this  Conference  the  impera- 
tive need  of  renewed  efforts  on  a  larger  scale;  and  we  find  in  the 
improved  financial  outlook  of  the  country  and  in  the  advancing  state 
of  public  opinion  better  hopes  than  ever  before  of  a  larger  response 
to  this  greater  need. 

"As  the  first  great  need  of  our  people  is  adequate  elementary  in- 
struction, and  as  this  instruction  must  come  to  children  so  largely 
through  mothers  and  women  teachers  in  their  homes  and  primary 
schools,  we  desire  to  emphasize  our  belief  in  the  wisdom  of  making 
the  most  liberal  investments  possible  in  the  education  of  girls  and 
women. 

"Whereas,  therefore,  the  conditions  existing  in  the  Southern  States 
seem  now  fully  ripe  for  the  larger  development  as  well  as  further 
improvement  of  the  schools;  and, 

"Whereas,  this  Conference  desires  to  associate  itself  actively  with 
the  work  of  organizing  better  school  systems  and  extending  their  ad- 
vantages to  all  the  people, 

"Resolved,  That  this  Conference  proceed  to  organize  by  the  appoint- 
ment of  an  Executive  Board  of  seven,  who  shall  be  fully  authorized 
and  empowered  to  conduct: 

"1.  A  campaign  of  education  for  free  schools  for  all  the  people,  by 
supplying  literature  to  the  newspaper  and  periodical  press,  by  par- 
ticipation in  educational  meetings  and  by  general  correspondence; 
and, 

"2.  To  conduct  a  Bureau  of  Information  and  '  Advice  on  Legisla- 
tion and  School  Organization. 

"For  these  purposes  this  Board  is  authorized  to  raise  funds  and 
disburse  them,  to  employ  a  secretary  or  agent,  and  to  do  whatever 
may  te  necessary  to  carry  out  effectively  these  measures  and  others 
that  may  from  time  to  time  be  found  feasible  and  desirable." 

The  appointment  of  this  executive  body  was  assigned  as  a 
personal  duty  to  the  presiding  officer,  Mr.  Ogden,  and  by  spe- 


BY    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  23 

cial  resolution  he  was  designated  as  the  eighth  member  of  the 
Board.  After  several  months  of  careful  consideration  he  called 
together  the  following  gentlemen:  Dr.  J.  L.  M.  Curry,  Dr. 
Edwin  A.  Alderman,  Dr.  Charles  D.  Mclver,  Dr.  Charles  W. 
Dabney,  Dr.  Wallace  Buttrick,  Dr.  H.  B.  Frissell,  and  Mr. 
George  Foster  Peabody.  These  gentlemen,  five  from  the  South 
and  three  from  the  North,  met  for  organization  in  the  city  of 
New  York  on  November  3,  1901,  and  there  added  to  their  num- 
ber Dr.  Albert  Shaw,  Mr.  Walter  H.  Page,  Mr.  William  H.  Bald- 
win, Jr.,  and  Mr.  H.  H.  Hanna.  The  Treasurer  of  the  Board  was 
Mr.  Peabody;  the  Secretary,  until  1904,  was  Dr.  Mclver.  Mr. 
Edgar  Gardner  Murphy,  of  Alabama,  was  appointed  by  Mr. 
Ogden  as  Executive  Secretary,  associated  with  the  President, 
was  later  elected  to  membership,  and  in  1904,  when  Dr.  Mclver 
became  Chairman  of  the  Campaign  Committee,  Mr.  Murphy  was 
elected  Secretary  of  the  Board.  In  1905  came  the  election  of 
Chancellor  W.  B.  Hill,  of  Georgia,  and  Mr.  Frank  R.  Chambers, 
of  New  York,  and  in  1906  the  election  of  Dr.  David  F.  Houston, 
President  of  the  University  of  Texas,  and  of  Dr.  George  S.  Dick- 
erman,  of  New  Haven,  Conn.,  Dr.  Dickerman  being  also  chosen 
as  Associate  Secretary.  In  December  of  the  same  year  there 
were  elected  to  membership  Dr.  S.  C.  Mitchell,  of  Richmond, 
Va. :  Mr.  Henry  E.  Fries,  of  North  Carolina;  Mr.  Sydney  J. 
Bowie,  of  Alabama,  and  Prof.  P.  P.  Claxton,  of  Tennessee. 
Twenty-one  men  have  thus  shared  this  fellowship  and  have  sat 
with  us  in  counsel.  Four  are  no  longer  with  us — Curry,  Bald- 
win, Hill,  Mclver — but,  as  you  may  well  believe,  these  are  not 
unremembered,  nor  unhonored,  nor  unloved. 

Counting  these  as  still  within  our  number,  let  us  ask— what 
then  is  the  Southern  Education  Board?  It  is,  first  of  all,  these 
men  whom  I  have  named.  It  is  an  organization,  but  the  organ- 
ization itself  is  chiefly  a  composite  of  personal  forces.  It  has 
no  charter  from  State  or  nation,  no  constitution,  no  by-laws.  It 
has  a  Treasurer  to  whoni  it  owes  more  than  has  ever  been  paid 
in,  a  Secretary  who  is  often  ill  and  sometimes  out  of  town,  a 
President  who  presides  over  it  and  over  whom  it  sometimes  has 
the  assumacy  to  preside ;  and  yet  things  get  done,  and  the  total, 
as  we  stand  apart  and  look  at  it,  is  a  result  which  in  its  broad 


24  THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

momentum  and  in  the  varied  fertility  of  its  achievement  might 
not  have  been  so  spontaneous  and  so  happy  if  there  had  been 
more  machinery  and  less  freedom. 

I  do  not  assume  however,  that  I  speak  with  cold  and  impar- 
tial discrimination.  I  could  not  be  impartial  if  I  would,  and  I 
would  not  if  I  could.  We  have  believed  in  this  work,  and  we 
have  believed  in  one  another;  and  I  know  of  no  method  of  con- 
temporary metempsychosis  by  which  we  are  to  get  out  of  our- 
selves and  out  of  the  pride,  the  faith  and  the  affections  which 
have  possessed  us,  in  order  that  we  may  win  the  cold  vision  and 
the  mathematical  perspective  of  the  millennial  antiquarian.  We 
shall  have  to  leave  it  to  him  then ;  but  we  will  not  leave  it  to  him 
now.  I  answer  to  the  impeachment  so  subtly  and  unconsciously 
conveyed  in  the  reply  of  Uncle  Rastus,  who  went  to  hear  the 
Governor  speak— not  your  Governor,  nor  Alabama's  Governor, 
but  just  a  Governor  somewhere  in  the  South.  The  Governor 
was  running  for  re-election,  and  he  had  spoken— just  a  little, 
we  may  be  sure— about  his  record.  "Well,  Rastus,  did  you  hear 
the  Governor's  speech?"  "Yes'r,  I  sho'ly  did,  boss."  "Well, 
what  did  you  think  of  it,  Rastus?"  'De  Guven'r  he  suttin'y 
did  make  a  gret  speech— he  recommen'  hisself  mighty  high.'' 

I  am  sure,  however,  that  in  this  company  I  shall  not  be  mis- 
understood. We  may  speak  of  this  Board,  of  the  personalities 
which  have  made  it,  and  of  the  policies  which  inspire  it,  not  in 
any  interest  of  self-gratulation,  but  as  a  means  of  exposition. 
We  well  know  the  measure  of  our  inadequacy;  and  we  clearly 
understand  the  fullness  and  the  literalness  of  our  dependence 
upon  the  active  educational  forces  of  the  South  and  North.  In 
all  the  history  of  voluntary  propagandas  there  has  never  been 
more  generous  co-operation. 

Still,  however,  are  there  large  margins  of  the  unaccomplished. 
There  is  before  us  still,  much  work  and  hard  work.  To  do  it  as 
well  as  possible  we  must  be  understood  as  clearly  as  possible. 
If  I  venture  then  to  speak  of  personalities  before  I  speak  of 
policies,  it  is  because  policies  are  best  understood,  and  can  only 
be  adequately  measured  in  relation  to  the  men  who  express 
them  and  attempt  them.  I  not  infrequently  find  that  all  of  the 
Southern  factors  in  this  Board's  life  are  not  generally  known 


BY    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  25 

at  the  North,  that  all  of  the  Northern  factors  in  its  life  are  not 
generally  known  at  the  South,  and  that  both  are  even  less  \vell 
known  among  the  vast  and  ascendant  population  of  the  West. 
It  has  never  been  a  Board  of  "dummy  directors"  or  of  ac- 
quiescent and  absentee  "well-wishers";  it  has  been  a  complex  of 
living  forces,  vital  with  the  common  contribution  of  each  man's 
thought  and  purpose.  Beginning  with  the  more  recently  elected 
of  its  membership,  let  me  put  down  these  names,  and  then 
briefly  and  sympathetically,  but  in  no  tone  of  idle  compliment, 
let  me  write  after  each  one  of  them  a  few  sentences  of  descrip- 
tive comment. 

SYDNEY  J.  BOWIE,  of  Alabama,  for  three  terms  member  of  Con- 
gress from  the  Fourth  Alabama  District;  born  July,  1865,  at  Talla- 
dega,  Ala.;  a  relative  by  marriage  and  a  devoted  friend  by  long  per- 
sonal association  of  Dr.  J.  L.  M.  Curry;  was  for  six  years  a  member 
of  the  Democratic  Executive  Committee  of  Alabama,  and  through  the 
five  years  last  past  has  been  one  of  the  most  consistent  and  aggressive 
forces  for  public  education  in  the  political  life  of  his  State. 

P.  P.  CLAXTON,  of  Tennessee,  Professor  of  Education  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  Tennessee,  at  Knoxville,  and  Superintendent  of  the  "Summer 
School  of  the  South"  from  its  origin,  was  born  September,  1862,  in 
Bedford  county,  Tennessee.  A  trained  teacher  and  an  expert  in 
the  training  of  teachers,  Professor  Claxton,  as  an  educational 
journalist,  as  executive  head  of  the  Summer  Schools  at  Knoxville,  and 
as  a  speaker  at  similar  institutions  elsewhere,  has  touched  the  life  of 
tens  of  thousands  of  the  members  of  the  profession  throughout  the 
South.  A  scholar  in  pedagogy,  having  the  advantages  of  the  best 
German  and  American  universities,  he  has  also  been  peculiarly  suc- 
cessful in  the  conduct  of  the  Tennessee  campaign  for  better  school 
legislation  and  larger  school  appropriations.  As  his  working  day  is 
a  day  of  from  sixteen  to  twenty-eight  hours,  the  rest  of  us,  who 
are  made  indolent  by  contrast,  always  speak  of  him  with  frank 
resentment. 

HENRY  E.  FRIES,  of  North  Carolina,  .born  September,  1857,  at  Sa- 
lem, N.  C.  Interested  in  manufacturing  and  electrical  developments; 
1885-1886,  member  of  the  County  Board  of  Education  till  elected  to  rep- 
resent his  county  in  the  General  Assembly  of  1887;  for  ten  years  there- 
after a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  State  Agricultural  and 
Mechanical  College  at  Raleigh,  N.  C.  Not  a  professional  educator  and 
not  in  active  politics,  Mr.  Fries  has  been,  nevertheless,  a  wise,  conserva- 


26  THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

tive  and  helpful  force  in  the  best  development  of  the  schools  and  of  the 
State.  Identified  with  large  interests  and  active  in  the  affairs  of  in- 
dustry and  trade,  he  has  represented  among  us — through  his  unaffected 
interest  in  wholesome  public  causes — that  type  of  the  business  man 
in  public  life  which  has  heretofore  been  somewhat  more  familiar  in 
the  North  than  in  the  South.  May  their  number  grow! 

S.  C.  MITCHELL,  Professor  of  History  in  Richmond  College,  Rich- 
mond, Va.;  born  in  Coffeeville,  Miss.,  December,  1864.  Dr.  Mitchell's 
work  in  helping  the  city  of  Richmond  to  bring  a  larger  organized  sup- 
port to  the  cause  of  popular  education,  his  later  service  in  relation  to 
the  effort  for  the  creation  of  the  University  of  Richmond,  an  organiza- 
tion unifying  and  correlating  the  various  educational  institutions  of  the 
city;  his  clearness  of  thought  and  courage  of  statement  in  reference 
to  the  vexed  and  difficult  issues  of  our  public  life,  and,  above  all,  his 
work  at  the  head  of  the  Co-operative  Education  Association  of  Virginia, 
the  strongest  State  organization  now  supporting  our  activities  at  the 
South — all  give  fitness  and  occasion  to  his  membership  in  this  Board. 

DAVID  F.  HOUSTON,  President  of  the  University  of  Texas,  Austin, 
Tex.;  born  at  Monroe,  N.  C.,  February,  1866.  Beginning  his  work 
as  a  teacher  in  South  Carolina  College,  Dr.  Houston  became,  from 
1888  to  1891,  the  superintendent  of  the  city  schools  of  Spartanburg,  S.  C. 
After  an  additional  course  at  Harvard  as  a  graduate  student  in  po- 
litical economy,  he  became  successively  adjunct  professor,  associate 
professor,  and  then  professor  of  political  science  at  the  University  of 
Texas  from  1894  to  1902,  being  dean  of  the  faculty  from  1899  to 
1902.  In  July,  1902,  he  became  President  of  the  Agricultural  and 
Mechanical  College  of  Texas,  but  returned  to  the  University  of  Texas 
as  president  of  that  institution  in  1905.  Born  within  the  older  South, 
.but  vigorously  and  successfully  at  work  within  the  newer  conditions 
of  the  Southwest,  President  Houston  is  peculiarly  qualified  by  experi- 
ence as  well  as  by  thorough  equipment  for  wise  leadership  in  rela- 
tion to  our  present  industrial  and  educational  issues. 

GEORGE  SHERWOOD  DICKERMAN,  born  at  Mt.  Carmel,  Conn., 
June,  1843,  receiving  his  academic  education  at  Yale  University. 
After  holding  a  number  of  pastorates  in  Congregational  Churches, 
Dr.  Dickerman  became  field  superintendent  of  the  American  Missionary 
Association  October  1,  1893,  to  October  1,  1895;  field  agent  of  the  Con- 
ference for  Education  in  the  South  1899  to  1901;  general  field  agent 
of  the  Southern  Education  Board  from  its  organization  to  the  present 
time,  and  associate  secretary  since  January  24,  1906,  and  has  been 
since  May  3,  1907,  general  field  agent  of  the  John  F.  Slater  Fund.  He 


BY   EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  27 

has  made  many  valuable  contributions  to  the  statistical  literature 
which  has  entered  so  vitally  into  the  "educational  campaign"  con- 
ducted by  this  Board.  Note  his  articles  in  "Educational,"  in  the 
"Southern  Workman,"  and  the  important  chapter  (XVIII)  on  the  "Il- 
literacy of  the  Voting  Population  of  the  United  States"  in  the  Report 
of  the  U.  S.  Commissioner  of  Education  for  1902.  Dr.  Dickerman  has 
also  been  editor  of  the  proceedings  of  the  eighth,  ninth  and  tenth 
Conferences  for  Education  in  the  South.  Although  a  man  of  Northern 
birth  and  training,  his  long  familiarity  with  the  field  of  Southern  edu- 
cation, both  on  the  side  of  its  institutions  and  its  personnel,  has  given 
him  a  knowledge  which  is  eminently  sympathetic,  practical  and  helpful. 

WALTER  BARNARD  HILL,  born  at  Talbotton,  Ga.,  September  9, 
1851;  died  at  Athens,  Ga.,  December  28,  1905.  Dr.  Hill  was  by 
profession  a  lawyer,  practicing  law  at  Macon,  Ga.,  from  1871-99;  was 
the  compiler  of  the  Code  of  Georgia  1873,  1882;  was  president  of  the 
Georgia  Bar  Association  in  1888,  and  as  a  member  of  the  American 
Bar  Association,  was  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Judicial  Admin- 
istration. While  still  a  young  man  Dr.  Hill  became  one  of  the  founders 
of  the  Law  School  of  Mercer  University,  and  was  one  of  the  instructors 
in  this  school  for  a  number  of  years.  H«  was  also  for  a  short  period 
one  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Vanderbilt  University.  He  became 
chancellor  (executive  head)  of  the  University  of  Georgia  in  1899,  soon 
rising  to  a  position  of  national  influence,  both  as  an  educator  and  as  a 
publicist.  He  was  a  rare  administrator,  deeply  and  wisely  solicitous 
as  to  the  future  of  the  institution  with  which  he  was  identified,  but  he 
conceived  the  responsibilities  of  his  leadership  in  broad  and  inclusive 
terms.  He  was  the  chairman  of  the  State  Educational  Committee, 
which  waged  so  successful  a  campaign  for  the  cause  of  local  taxation 
for  the  common  schools  of  Georgia;  he  was  one  of  the  leaders  in  the 
movement  for  State  Prohibition,  and  was  the  author  of  the  Georgia 
Local  Option  Bill.  In  the  struggle  for  all  the  issues  of  freedom  and 
humanity,  whether  in  the  region  of  academic  thought  or  in  the  region 
of  educational  or  political  administration,  his  influence  was  ever  a 
righteous  and  explicit  force.  Having  the  scholar's  temper,  endowed 
with  great  clarity  of  vision  and  serenity  of  spirit,  possessing  a  marked 
literary  faculty,  his  gift  to  his  countrymen,  in  their  seasons  of  per- 
plexity, was  light  rather  than  heat — the  counsel  of  a  pure  heart  in- 
formed by  a  just  and  disinterested  mind.  He  had  these  two  powers 
of  all  real  leadership — the  courage  which  aids  the  winning  of  truth, 
a  patience  which  aids  the  winning  of  the  people. 

FRANK  R.  CHAMBERS,  born  at  Mobile,  Ala.,  September,  1850.  Un- 
like many  of  the  Southerners  who  have  made  their  homes  in  New  York 


28  THE  SOUTHERN  EDUCATION  BOARD. 

City,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Chambers  have  continued  to  maintain  a  deep 
personal  interest  in  the  great  "home-questions"  of  the  South.  Al- 
though for  many  years  at  the  head  of  the  well-known  firm  of  Rogers, 
Peet  &  Co.,  Mr.  Chambers  has  not  permitted  his  success  in  business 
to  limit  his  wise  and  generous  co-operation  in  reference  to  public 
affairs.  As  a  member  of  this  Board,  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  the  Teachers'  College  of  New  York,  and  as  the  friend 
and  counselor  of  many  of  the  men  and  women  who  are  actively  at 
work  within  the  South,  his  personality  has  represented  a  consistent 
influence  in  behalf  of  all  the  better  things  in  Southern  progress. 

EDGAR  GARDNER  MURPHY,  born  near  Fort  Smith,  Ark.,  August 
1869;  educated  in  private  and  public  schools  at  San  Antonio,  Tex.,  and 
at  the  University  of  the  South,  Sewanee,  Tenn.  Mr.  Murphy  was  for 
twelve  years  in  the  ministry  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  at  length  retiring 
from  the  ministry  in  order  that  he  might  engage  exclusively  in 
civic  and  educational  work  from  the  somewhat  less  restricted  posi- 
tion of  the  layman.  He  was  the  organizer  and  secretary  of  the 
Conference  on  the  Race  Problems  and  Conditions  of  the  South  at 
Montgomery,  Ala.,  1900;  was  the  first  chairman  of  the  Alabama  Child 
Labor  Committee,  1901;  later  suggesting  the  organization  of  the  Na- 
tional Child  Labor  Committee,  and  acting  as  first  secretary  (volun- 
tary) of  that  committee  until  its  permanent  organization  was  effected. 
His  general  attitude  on  educational  and  industrial  issues  is  ex- 
pressed in  the  volume,  "Problems  of  the  Present  South,"  recently 
published  by  the  Macmillan  Co.,  New  York  and  London.  The  condi- 
tions of  his  work  and  of  persistent  ill-health  have  resulted  in  many 
temporary  periods  of  absence  from  the  South,  but  Mr.  Murphy  is  a 
resident  and  voter  of  the  State  of  Alabama,  and  his  permanent  ad- 
dress is  P.  O.  Box  347,  Montgomery.  He  is  vice-president  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Carnegie  Library  of  Montgomery  and  a  member 
of  the  Alabama  Education  Committee.  He  was  for  two  years  vice-pres- 
ident of  the  Conference  for  Education  in  the  South,  and  was  editor  and 
part  author  of  "Alabama's  First  Question,"  the  text-book  of  the  Ala- 
bama campaign  for  local  taxation. 

ALBERT  SHAW,  born  at  Shandon,  Ohio,  July,  1857;  graduated  at 
Iowa  College,  Grinnell,  Iowa,  in  1879,  afterwards  taking  special  courses 
in  history  and  in  political  economy  at  Johns  Hopkins  University,  Bal- 
timore. Dr.  Shaw  was  associated,  editorially,  with  the  Minne- 
apolis Tribune  from  1883-88,  1889-90,  studying  in  Europe  during  the 
intervening  year,  1888-89.  In  1891  he  established  and  has  since  con- 
ducted the  American  Review  of  Reviews.  He  is  the  author  of  a 
number  of  standard  volumes  upon  social  and  political  subjects,  the- 


BY   EDGAE    GARDNER    MURPHY.  29 

best  known  being  his  "Municipal  Government  in  Great  Britain"  and 
"Municipal  Government  in  Continental  Europe"  (published  by  the 
Macmillan  Company,  1895.)  See  also  Dr.  Shaw's  more  recent  volume, 
"The  Political  Problems  of  American  Development"  (1907).  As  a 
student  and  interpreter  of  public  opinion,  as  well  as  a  critic  and  his- 
torian of  modern  political  institutions,  he  has  done  much  to  bring 
about  a  clearer  and  broader  understanding  of  Southern  men  and  South- 
ern movements.  He  has  been  an  active  member,  not  only  of  this 
Board,  but  of  the  General  Education  Board  as  well. 

WALTER  H.  PAGE,  born  at  Cary,  N.  C.,  August,  1855;  was  edu- 
cated at  the  Bingham  School  and  at  Randolph-Macon  College,  Vir- 
ginia, and  at  Johns  Hopkins  University,  Baltimore.  From  1890-95,  Mr. 
Page  was  the  editor  of  the  Forum,  New  York  City,  later  (1895-99) 
becoming  literary  adviser  to  the  well-known  publishing  house  of 
Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Boston.  From  1896  to  1899  he  was  also 
the  editor  of  the  Atlantic  Monthly,  then  returning  to  New  York  and 
uniting  with  Mr.  F.  N.  Doubleday  and  others  in  the  publishing  house 
of  Doubleday,  Page  &  Co.  Mr.  Page  has  been  the  editor  of  "The 
World's  Work"  since  its  establishment  in  November,  1900.  As  a 
member  of  both  the  Southern  and  the  General  Education  Boards,  as 
the  author  of  "The  Rebuilding  of  Old  Commonwealths"  and  as  a 
public  lecturer  and  speaker  he  has  continued  to  exercise  a  direct  and 
virile  influence  in  Southern  affairs. 

HUGH  HENRY  HANNA,  born  at  LaFayette,  Ind.,  September,  1848. 
Mr.  Hanna,  after  his  educational  training  in  the  United  States  and 
in  Germany,  began  his  business  life  in  the  bank  of  Mr.  Joseph  S. 
Hanna,  his  father,  at  LaFayette.  In  1880  he  removed  to  Indianapolis, 
where  he  became  later  the  president  of  the  Atlas  Engine  Works,  and 
where  he  has  since  resided.  Here,  beginning  with  the  call  issued  by  the 
Indianapolis  Board  of  Trade,  November,  1896,  for  a  monetary  con- 
ference, he  organized  the  Monetary  Commission,  developing  plans  for 
currency  reform,  which  were  partly  included  in  legislation  enacted  by 
Congress  in  1900.  In  recognition  of  his  leadership  in  the  movement 
for  gold  standard  legislation,  a  gold  medal  has  been  awarded  to  Mr. 
Fanna  by  the  New  York  Chamber  of  Commerce.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  General  Education  Board,  as  well  as  a  member  of  the  Southern 
Board.  In'  1903  Mr.  Hanna  was  appointed  by  the  President  the  chair- 
man of  the  Commission  on  International  Exchange,  "which  presented 
the  subject  of  stabilizing  in  silver-using  countries,  the  cost  of  gold  bills 
of  exchange  to  the  most  important  nations  of  Europe." 

WILLIAM  H.  BALDWIN,  JK..  born  February  5,  1863,  at  Boston, 
Mass.;  died  at  Locust  Valley,  N.  Y.,  January  3,  1905.  Mr.  Baldwin  re- 


30  THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOAKI). 

ceived  his  early  education  in  the  public  schools  of  Boston  and  in  the 
Roxbury  Latin  School,  graduating  at  Harvard  University  in  1885.  Early 
in  his  career  Mr.  Baldwin  went  West,  and  prior  to  June  1,  1888, 
became  division  freight  agent  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railway,  with 
headquarters  at  Butte,  Mont.  Promotion  soon  followed,  and  from 
1888-89  we  find  him  at  Omaha,  Neb.,  as  assistant  general  freight 
agent  of  the  same  railway,  becoming  later  the  manager  of  the  Leaven- 
worth  division,  with  headquarters  at  that  point.  In  1889-90  he  became 
general  manager  of  the  Montana  Union  Railway,  returning  to  Omaha 
in  1890  as  assistant  vice-president  of  the  Union  Pacific.  In  1891  he 
became  general  manager  of  the  Flint  and  Pere  Marquette  Railway.  In 
1894  he  was  made  third  vice-president,  and  in  1895  second  vice-president 
of  the  Southern  Railway.  From  1896  until  the  time  of  his  death  he 
was  the  president  of  the  Long  Island  Railroad,  with  headquarters  in 
New  York  City.  Thus,  through  rapid  promotions  won  in  the  school 
ol  a  rigorous  and  varied  experience,  we  find  Mr.  Baldwin,  at  the 
early  age  of  thirty-three,  in  a  position  of  large  executive  responsibility 
at  the  head  of  one  of  the  important  railway  systems  of  the  country. 

His  activities,  however,  were  by  no  means  absorbed  in  the  demands 
of  his  business  career.  As  chairman  of  the  "Committee  of  Fif- 
teen" and  as  one  of  the  more  active  members  of  the  City 
Club,  he  was  closely  identified  with  the  movement  for  municipal 
reform  in  New  York  City.  His  deep  interest  in  the  broader  human  and 
economic  questions  of  our  time  found  an  early  and  ever  increasing 
appeal  in  the  rapidly  changing  conditions  of  the  South.  He  was  a 
member  of  this  Board  and  the  first  chairman  of  the  General  Educa- 
tion Board.  The  passion  for  service,  for  altruistic  and  constructive 
labor,  brought  him  to  the  support  of  all  those  causes  through  which 
the  South  is  attempting  the  development  of  her  backward  elements. 
He  had  a  zeal  and  a  love  for  helpfulness,  and  he  desired  to  work, 
not  against  the  South,  but  with  the  South.  To  that  thought  he  would 
again  and  again  return.  He  did  not  believe  in  .a  superimposed  mil- 
lennium. Not  because  he  lacked  pride  in  his  New  England  birthright 
(he  knew  how  much  he  owed  to  it),  but  because  he  so  clearly  saw 
that  our  Southern  conditions  present  just  now  the  supreme  test  of 
our  modern  democracy  and  of  a  sound  Americanism;  because  the 
perils  here  are  so  great  and  the  opportunities  and  the  rewards  are  so 
abundant,  he  wished,  within  this,  our  creative  period,  to  stand  beside 
us.  Thus  appreciating  the  privilege  of  the  Southerner,  he  would  some- 
times say,  in  his  spontaneous  earnestness,  "What  would  I  not  give  to 
be  a  Southern  man?"  So  shall  we  account  him!  And  those  to 
whom  he  spoke  and  with  whom  he  labored  have  gained,  in  every  gain 
of  such  a  countryman,  a  standpoint  no  narrower  than  his  own — & 
vision  of  that  larger  land  within  which  our  service,  unheld  by  the 


15 Y    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  31 

boundaries  of  a  bitter  and  divisive  past,  shall  everywhere  touch  and 
clear  the  issues  of  our  country's  progress. 

HOLLIS  BURKE  FRISSELL,  born  at  Amenia,  New  York,  July, 
1851.  He  was  graduated  at  Yale  College  in  the  class  of  1874,  and  from 
the  Union  Theological  Seminary,  New  York  City,  in  1879.  Shortly  after 
his  graduation  from  the  seminary,  Dr.  Frissell  was  ordained  a  clergy- 
man in  the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  became  assistant  pastor  of  the 
Madison  Avenue  Presbyterian  church,  New  York,  afterward  going  to 
Hampton  Institute,  Hampton,  Va.,  as  chaplain  of  that  institution. 
Upon  the  death  of  General  Armstrong,  Hampton's  founder,  Dr.  Fris- 
sell, in  1893,  was  made  principal.  Although  directly  engaged  upon 
the  problems  of  negro  and  Indian  education,  his  work  at  Hampton 
has  contributed  to  the  discovery  and  application  of  modern  educa- 
tional methods  in  their  broadest  sense;  and  his  interest  in  the  edu- 
cational advancement  of  every  class  and  factor  of  our  population 
has  helped  to  give  initiative  and  direction  to  the  recent  striking 
educational  progress  of  Virginia  and  the  South.  Dr.  Frissell  is  a 
member  both  of  this  Board  and  of  the  General  Education  Board. 

WALLACE  BUTTRICK,  born  at  Potsdam,  N.  Y.,  October,  1853. 
Gaining  his  earlier  education  at  the  Ogdensburg  Academy,  at  the  Pots- 
dam Normal  School  and  through  private  study,  Dr.  Buttrick  gradu- 
ated from  the  Rochester  Theological  Seminary  in  1883.  He  was  the 
pastor  of  the  First  Baptist  church,  New  Haven,  Conn.,  from  1883-89, 
raster  of  the  First  Baptist  church  of  St.  Paul,  Minn.,  1889-92,  and  of 
Emmanuel  church,  Albany,  from  1892  to  1902.  Dr.  Buttrick  was  one 
of  the  earliest  members  of  the  Southern  Education  Board,  and  has 
been  the  secretary  and  executive  officer  of  the  General  Education 
Board  since  its  organization,  in  April  of  1902.  He  has  been  a  constant 
adviser,  since  Dr.  Curry's  death,  in  the  administration  of  the  Peabody 
Board,  and  also  the  General  Agent  of  the  John  F.  Slater  Fund.  There 
are  few  educational  institutions  in  the  South  in  which  he  is  not  per- 
sonally known,  and  the  increasing  responsibilities  which  have  come 
to  him  are,  in  great  degree,  a  natural  and  instinctive  tribute  to  the 
clear  perceptions,  the  broad  sympathies  and  the  executive  skill  with 
which  his  tasks  have  been  discharged. 

CHARLES  W.  DABNEY,  born  at  Hampden-Sidney,  Va.,  June,  1855, 
gaining  his  earlier  education  at  Hampden-Sidney  College  and  at  the 
University  of  Virginia.  In  1878-80  Dr.  Dabney  studied  at  Berlin  and 
at  Gottingen,  and  after  his  return  to  the  United  States  he  became 
professor  of  chemistry  in  the  University  of  North  Carolina,  and  later 
State  chemist  and  Director  of  the  North  Carolina  Agricultural  Experi- 


32  THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

ment  Station.  He  was  one  of  a  small  band  who  started  the  campaign 
for  better  schools  in  North  Carolina,  and  secured  the  establishment  of 
the  Industrial  School  at  Raleigh,  which  has  since  become  the  North 
Carolina  College  of  Agriculture  and  Mechanic  Arts.  He  was  the  chief 
of  the  department  of  government  and  State  exhibits  at  the  New  Orleans 
Exposition  of  1884-5,  later  becoming  president  of  the  University  of  Ten- 
nessee (1887-1904),  and  from  1893  to  1897  the  Assistant  Secretary  of 
Agriculture  of  the  United  States. 

Dr.  Dabney  was  the  first  to  discover  the  phosphate  deposits 
in  Eastern  North  Carolina,  as  well  as  the  deposits  of  tin  ore  in  the 
western  section  of  the  State,  and  to  make  these  known  to  science 
and  commerce.  It  was  while  president  of  the  University  of  Tennessee 
that  Dr.  Dabney's  searching  and  far-reaching  analysis  of  public  school 
conditions  at  the  South  was  delivered  at  the  Winston-Salem  session 
of  this  Conference,  contributing  directly  to  the  quickening  of  those 
impulses  which  found  their  expression  in  the  resolutions  calling  for 
the  organization  of  this  Board.  As  the  superintendent  of  the  Summer 
School  of  the  South  and  as  the  director  of  our  Bureau  of  Investigation 
and  Publication,  Dr.  Dabney  has  been  intimately  associated  with  two 
of  the  most  important  activities  of  the  organization;  and  while  his 
acceptance  of  the  presidency  of  the  University  of  Cincinnati  (1904) 
has  not  withdrawn  his  interest  from  the  South,  it  has  taken  from 
the  South  one  of  the  most  aggressive  and  effective  of  our  leaders  in 
education. 

EDWIN  ANDERSON  ALDERMAN,  born  at  Wilmington,  N.  C., 
May,  1861,  receiving  his  collegiate  education  at  the  University  of 
North  Carolina.  Early  in  life  Dr.  Alderman  decided,  under  the  leader- 
ship and  inspiration  of  Dr.  Curry,  to  give  himself  to  the  work  of 
public  education.  From  1884  to  1887  he  was  superintendent  of  the 
city  schools  of  Goldsboro.  In  association  with  .Charles  D.  Mclver,  he 
"campaigned"  the  State  of  North  Carolina,  bringing  to  audiences 
gathered  at  teachers'  institutes  that  message  of  the  meaning  and  the 
necessity  for  larger  school  facilities  which  has  since  become  the 
"watchword"  of  our  social  progress.  Those  early  campaigns  repre- 
sented in  a  fashion  "a  discovery  of  method,"  and  they  became  the 
type  and  precedent  of  our  many  efforts  from  that  day  to  this — efforts 
to  reach  an  isolated  but  responsive  population  through  the  contagious 
enthusiasm  of  trusted  personal  leaders — a  campaign  of  real  men  talk- 
ing face  to  face  with  real  people  concerning  the  real  things  of  their 
life  and  welfare.  In  1889  Dr.  Alderman  became  assistant  State  Super- 
intendent of  Education;  in  1892  professor  of  English  in  the  State 
Normal  College;  in  1893  professor  of  Education  in  the  University  of 
North  Carolina;  in  1896  president  of  that  institution;  in  1900  president 


BY    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  33 

of  the  Tulane  University  of  New  Orleans,  La.,  and  in  June,  1904,  presi- 
dent of  the  University  of  Virginia.  Though  identified  thus  conspicu- 
ously with  the  institutions  of  "higher  education,"  Dr.  Alderman  has 
never  for  a  moment  withdrawn  from  that  battle  in  behalf  of  the 
common  schools  which  enlisted  in  his  earlier  years  the  deepest  forces 
of  a  singularly  gifted  personality.  He  is  a  member  both  of  the  South- 
ern PJducation  Board  and  of  the  General  Education  Board. 

CHARLES  DUNCAN  McIVER,  born  in  Moore  county,  N.  C..  Sep- 
tember, 1860;  died  September  17,  1906.  Dr.  Mclver  graduated  at  the 
University  of  North  Carolina  in  1881.  Enlisting  in  the  teacher's  work 
and  assisting  in  organizing  the  public  schools  of  Winston  and  Durham, 
he  later  (1889-92)  became  State  Institute  Conductor,  holding  insti- 
tutes for  the  teachers  of  the  public  schools  in  practically  every  county 
of  the  State,  and  uniting  with  Dr.  Alderman  in  the  educational  "cam- 
paign" to  which  I  have  just  referred.  Profoundly  convinced  of  the 
necessity  for  larger  educational  opportunities  for  the  women  of  the 
South,  he  conceived,  founded  and  organized,  after  a  long,  but  success- 
ful, struggle  for  the  necessary  legislative  appropriations,  the  State 
Normal  and  Industrial  College  for  Women,  located  at  Greensboro,  and 
became  the  first  president  of  the  institution. 

Although  it  was  in  North  Carolina,  in  this  very  county,  that  he  was 
born,  he  served  all  men — the  South,  the  nation,  the  world — for  he 
labored  through  the  unswerving  love  and  the  untiring  service  of  a 
great  and  genuine  consecration  to  advance  those  causes  which  chiefly 
contribute  to  the  efficiency  of  labor,  the  stability  of  the  home  and  the 
peace  of  States.  He  was  a  teacher  and  an  educator,  but  in  the  future 
of  his  country  he  will  be  known  as  a  publicist  and  statesman  of  even 
higher  rank,  a  masterful  commoner  in  that  great  debate  by  which 
communities  are  moved  to  attempt  their  nobler  visions  and  to  do 
their  broader  work.  Here,  however,  we  would  especially  think  of 
liim  as  our  companion  and  our  friend. 

J.  L.  M.  CURRY,  born  in  Lincoln  county,  Ga.,  June,  1825;  died  at 
Asheville,  N.  C.,  February  12,  1903.  At  the  early  age  of  thirteen  he 
removed  to  Alabama.  He  received  his  collegiate  education  from  the 
University  of  Georgia  and  from  the  Harvard  Law  School,  graduating 
from  the  latter  in  1845. 

Returning  to  Alabama,  he  soon  entered  public  life,  representing  his 
county  in  the  Alabama  Legislature  1847-48,  from  1853-54  and  from 
1855  to  1856.  While  he  was  born  in  Georgia  and  passed  much  of 
bis  life  in  Virginia,  Alabama  has  thus  claimed  him  as  in  one  sense 
peculiarly  her  own;  its  people  were  his  "constituency";  for  he  sought 
public  office  in  no  other  State,  and  never  entered  political  life  except 


34  THE  SOUTHERN  EDUCATION  BOARD. 

as  a  representative  of  Alabama.  From  1857  to  1861  he  served  Alabama 
as  a  member  of  the  National  Congress,  and  from  1861  to  1865  as  a 
member  of  the  Congress  of  the  Confederate  States.  During  th» 
struggle  of  arms,  he  served  upon  the  staff  of  General  Joseph  E.  John- 
ston and  of  General  Joseph  Wheeler,  becoming  a  lieutenant-colonel  of 
cavalry.  In  the  later  period  of  the  war  he,  like  General  Robert  E. 
Lee,  took  up  the  work  of  the  educator,  becoming  president  of  Howard 
College,  then  located  at  Marion,  Ala.  In  1868,  however,  he  moved  to 
Richmond,  Va.,  and  there  became  professor  of  English  philosophy 
and  constitutional  law  until  1881. 

At  the  death  of  Dr.  Sears,  upon  nomination  of  President  Grant, 
seconded  by  Rutherford  B.  Hayes,  he  was  made  the  agent  of  the 
Peabody  Board.  He  so  far  justified  this  appointment  that,  although 
he  served  the  United  States  at  the  court  of  Spain,  under  appointment 
ol  President  Cleveland,  from  1885-88,  the  trustees  of  the  fund  declined 
to  elect  a  substitute,  and  before  his  return  to  the  United  States  his 
position  as  agent  of  the  Peabody  Board  was  again  tendered  him.  He 
became  also,  in  1890,  the  agent  of  the  Slater  Board,  and  these  two 
trusts  he  continued  to  administer  until  his  death.  But  important  as 
was  his  work  of  administration,  it  was  as  nothing  in  comparison  with 
that  service  of  constructive  evangelism  by  which  he  won  the  public 
mind  of  the  bouth,  cursed  with  its  racial  divisions  and  distracted  by 
the  heritage  of  war,  to  his  faith  in  the  policies  of  popular  education 
at  the  public  cost.  So  far  as  such  a  declaration  can  be  made  of  any 
one  individual,  he  was  the  father  of  the  educational  rejuvenation  of 
the  South — the  author,  master  and  apostle  of  its  theory,  the  creator 
oi  its  democratic  basis,  the  inspiration  of  its  leadership.  He  would 
not,  could  not,  leave  its  policies  within  the  pale  limbo  of  academic 
recommendations.  He  brought  them  before  legislatures;  he  annexed 
them  to  our  fundamental  thinking;  he  made  them  plausible  to  our 
politicians,  cogent  and  irresistible  to  our  statesmanship;  he  concerted 
the  people,  and  the  people,  dreaming  his  dream  after  him,  have  justi- 
fied his  faith,  and,  yielding  the  homely,  but  constraining,  answer  of 
their  sacrifices,  have  responded  with  cheir  votes  and  their  taxes. 

It  was  not  all  done  in  a  day,  nor  is  it  finished  even  in  our  time. 
But  at  the  moment  of  our  crisis,  when  we  were  tempted  to  build  apart 
from  the  national  fellowship,  when  we  were  tempted  to  build  hopelessly 
and  perhaps  in  bitterness;  when  we  were  tempted  to  build  for  the  few, 
there  came  this  man — strong  with  our  strength,  strong  in  our  way, 
tearing  our  wounds,  and  yet  gifted  with  the  gifts  which  we  revere — 
and  said  that  we  should  build  within  the  national  perspective;  should 
build  not  in  bitterness  or  self-pity,  but  in  hope,  and — hardest  of  all, 
yet  as  holding,  for  a  brave  people,  something  of  the  secret  of  privilege 
and  honor — that  we  should  dare  to  build,  not  for  the  few,  but  for  all. 


15  Y    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  35 

We  dwell  still  within  the  shadows  of  the  imperfect,  but  that  we 
tee  these  shadows  and  are  conscious  of  these  imperfections  is  evidence 
that  we  dwell  within  a  light  of  which  this  man,  under  God,  was 
in  our  day  the  herald.  I  am  glad  that  the  State  of  Alabama  has 
chosen  him  for  commemoration  at  the  nation's  capitol;  we  would  all 
gratefully  remember  his  service  as  a  member  of  the  General  Educa- 
tion Board  and  as  the  supervising  director  of  this  Board;  but  we  may 
v«ell  forget  these  lesser  things  as  we  dwell  in  thankfulness  upon  the 
iiiemory  of  what  it  meant  for  our  people  of  the  South  and  for  this 
nation  that  at  the  one  hour  when  such  a  man  was  our  sorest  need 
Dr.  Curry  came,  brought  his  message  and  did  his  incomparable  work. 

GEORGE  FOSTER  PEABODY,  born  at  Columbus,  Ga.,  July,  1852, 
receiving  his  early  education  in  that  city.  Engaging  later  in  busi- 
ness in  the  city  of  New  York,  he  entered  the  firm  of  Spencer,  Trask 
&  Co.,  bankers,  and  was  prominently  identified  with  large  banking 
and  fiduciary  interests  until  his  retirement  from  active  business  in 
1906.  Mr.  Peabody  has  been  vice-president  and  director  of  the  Mexican 
Northern  Ry.  Co.;  director  in  the  Morton  Trust  Co.,  the  General 
Electric  Co.,  the  American  Beet  Sugar  Co.,  the  Mexican  National  Con- 
struction Co.;  treasurer  of  the  National  Committee  of  the  Demo- 
cratic party;  director  in  the  National  Committee  of  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association;  trustee  of  Columbia  College;  trustee  of  Tuskegee 
Institute;  trustee  of  the  University  of  Georgia;  member  of  the  New 
York  Chamber  of  Commerce;  treasurer  and  trustee  of  Hampton 
Institute,  and  member  and  treasurer  of  the  General  Education  Board, 
as  well  as  vice-president  and  treasurer  of  the  Southern  Education 
Board. 

Wide  and  varied  as  have  been  Mr.  Peabody's  business,  political  and 
educational  interests,  their  partial  enumeration  can  give  but  an  inade- 
quate impression  of  the  many-sidedness  of  his  service  to  the  country 
as  a  whole,  and  particularly  to  the  South.  Indeed,  if  personal  devotion 
to  noble  and  fundamental  causes  be  a  test  of  patriotism,  and  if  the 
language  of  affectionate  cynicism  may  be  pardoned,  I  think  it  may  be 
said,  both  of  Mr.  Peabody  and  of  Mr.  Ogden,  that  they  have  left 
business  and  have  retired  into  public  life.  We  here  can  never  forget 
that  it  was  Mr.  Peabody's  faith  in  this  work  and  his  initial  generosity 
in  its  behalf  that  made  possible  the  founding  of  this  Southern  Edu- 
cation Board  and  the  inauguration  of  its  first  two  years  of  experi- 
mental work.  Others  gladly  shared  both  his  initiative  and  his  gen- 
erosity, but  it  should  be  more  widely  known,  not  for  personal,  but  for 
public  reasons,  that  it  was  the  action  of  one  who  was  Southern  born, 
his  "underwriting"  or  guaranteeing  of  the  first  $40,000  of  our  expen- 
diture, which  made  it  possible  to  begin  this  work  with  dispatch,  with 


36  THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

dignity  and  with  driving  power.  But,  even  deeper  and  greater  than 
obligations  such  as  this,  is  that  inward  record  of  more  personal  in- 
debtedness, wherein  we  daily  transcribe  the  appreciation  of  wise  coun- 
sels, brotherly  fidelities  and  noble  visions. 

ROBERT  C.  OGDEN,  born  June,  1836,  at  Philadelphia,  Penn.,  re- 
ceiving his  early  education  in  that  city,  moving  at  a  later  date  to 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  then  (subsequent  to  another  interval  of  residence  in 
Philadelphia)  moving  to  New  York  City,  where  he  now  resides. 
Since  January  1,  1885,  Mr.  Ogden  has  been  a  member  of  the  firm 
of  John  Wanamaker,  retiring  from  active  business,  however,  in  Feb- 
ruary, 1907,  by  reason  of  a  serious  illness,  from  which  he  has 
not  yet  wholly  recovered.  Not  only  as  a  director  in  Union  Theological 
Seminary  of  New  York,  but  as  a  writer  and  as  a  worker  for  many 
years  in  behalf  of  the  Sunday-school,  and  in  behalf  of  the  "free  pew" 
in  the  Christian  Church,  Mr.  Ogden  has  long  manifested  his  practical 
interest  in  the  popular  efficiency  of  our  religious  institutions.  Since 
1880  he  has  been  president  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampton  Insti- 
tute; he  is  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Russell  Sage 
Foundation  and  of  the  Jeanes  Fund;  he  is  a  member  and  was  the 
second  chairman  of  the  General  Education  Board;  has  been  president 
of  this  Conference  in  all  the  years  of  its  larger  history,  and  was, 
under  the  instructions  of  the  Conference,  the  organizer  of  the  South- 
ern Education  Board.  By  action  of  the  Board,  he  was  unanimously 
elected,  and  has  been  successively  re-elected,  as  its  president. 

It  is  familiarly  and  truly  said  that  Mr.  Ogden  has  done  a  unique 
and  informing  work  in  bringing  North  and  South  together,  in  helping 
to  annul  estrangements,  and  to  create  those  mutual  interests  and 
appreciations  which  transfer  the  "unity"  of  the  republic  from  the 
region  of  amiable  "make-believe"  to  the  category  of  constructive  social 
forces.  He  has  indeed  helped  the  oneness  of  the  country  to  have  a 
practical  meaning  and  a  working  power,  but  he  has  wrought  as  great 
a  work  within  the  South.  Here  we  were  divided,  not  by  battle,  but 
by  distances;  not  by  misunderstandings,  but  by  isolation.  The  very 
intensity  of  our  State  loyalties  made  the  educational  leaders  of  Vir- 
ginia largely  unknown  in  Alabama  and  Louisiana,  made  the  educa- 
tional leaders  of  Texas  and  Mississippi  largely  unknown  in  Georgia 
and  the  Carolinas.  It  has  been  in  large  measure  Mr.  Ogden's  privi- 
lege to  modify  these  conditions.  His  tact  and  insight,  his  varied 
knowledge  of  men,  together  with  an  unselfish  public  interest  of  pe- 
culiar singleness  and  catholicity,  have  helped  him  to  broaden  our 
neighborhoods,  to  help  the  South  to  know  the  South,  and  to  fuse  and 
unify  the  freer  and  deeper  forces  of  our  leadership.  And  after  bring- 
ing the  men  and  the  women  of  the  South  together,  he  has  helped 


BY   EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  37 

them  to  gain  a  national  hearing,  a  hearing  through  which  they  have 
been  enabled  to  speak  more  frankly  of  their  conditions,  and  to  interpret 
with  a  more  vivid  cogency  and  with  a  larger  influence  the  significance 
and  the  promise  of  our  struggle.  I  have  spoken  at  other  points,  and 
this  Conference  will  speak  in  many  ways,  of  our  loss  in  his  absence 
here  to-day;  for  he,  among  Americans  and  among  Southerners,  has 
been  among  us  as  a  living  bond  of  our  fellowship  and  of  our  achieve- 
ment. 

What  then  are  the  methods  and  policies  of  this  Board?  When 
I  say  that  they  are  such  as  would  come  naturally  from  the  men 
whom  I  have  named  I  have  already  Defined  their  essential  spirit. 
In  their  details  they  have  arisen,  as  did  the  Board  itself,  out 
of  the  facts  of  the  situation  and  from  the  challenge  of  the  things 
that  demanded  doing.  If  this  Board  spoke  much  at  the  first, 
concerning  the  data  of  illiteracy,  it  was  because  the  task  was 
unescapable.  The  gravity  of  our  popular  needs  was  not  popu- 
larly understood.  The  facts  were  down  in  the  books,  but  they 
were  not  known  among  the  people.  Someone  had  to  tell  the 
whole  truth,  had  to  tell  it  many  times  and  by  many  methods.  A 
large  share  in  this  work  devolved  upon  the  Bureau  of  Publica- 
tion established  by  the  Board  at  Knoxville,  Tenn.,  under  Dr. 
Charles  W.  Dabney,  then  President  of  the  University  of  Ten- 
nessee, and  Prof.  P.  P.  Claxton,  Superintendent  of  the  Bureau. 
At  first  the  broad  recital  of  the  facts  brought  resentment.  But 
men  soon  came  to  recognize  that  the  greater  reproach  is  not 
illiteracy,  but  ignorance  of  it  and  indifference  to  it. 

The  illiterate  masses  of  our  white  population  are  a  pure  and 
vigorous  stock.  They  are  not  the  decadent,  but  the  unstarted. 
Their  promise  is  illimitable.  To  tell  of  their  needs  was  no  pleas- 
ant enterprise.  Even  now,  an  occasional  reactionary  spirit  is 
heard  to  declare  that  because  he  esteems  and  loves  them,  and 
because  they  are  better  than  many  of  the  literate  population  of 
other  sections,  the  movement  that  reveals  their  ignorance  and 
insists  upon  their  education,  is  to  be  resisted.  The  answer  of  the 
South  as  a  whole,  is  that— because  she  esteems  and  loves  them— 
their  children  are  entitled  to  the  broadest  opportunities  and  the 
best  advantages  which  life  may  offer ;  that  any  movement  which 
reveals  their  ignorance  in  order  to  bring  them  knowledge,  which 


38  THE  SOUTHERN  EDUCATION  BOARD. 

would  increase  their  knowledge  not  upon  the  ground  of  their 
incapacity,  but  upon  the  ground  of  their  value  to  society ;  which 
asserts  their  right  to  the  world's  best,  and  the  world's  right  to 
their  best,  is  a  movement  to  be  commended  and  re-enforced. 

That  is,  then,  to-day  the  answer  of  the  South;  and  how  far 
this  Board  has  helped  the  South  to  make  that  answer  I  am  will- 
ing to  leave  to  the  judgment  and  the  memories  of  the  great 
body  of  our  Southern  teachers.  That  the  facts  are  known ;  that 
there  is  some  general  appreciation  of  their  compelling  force; 
that  they  can  be  admitted  frankly  and  discussed  publicly- 
even  by  the  candidate  for  public  office — marks  a  distinct  achieve- 
ment of  our  average  public  opinion  within  the  past  ten  years. 
This  Board — I  need  hardly  say — has  been  by  no  means  the  sole 
agency  of  so  marked  a  change.  But  the  change  is  here ;  and 
that  we  have  labored  for  it,  in  season  and  out  of  season,  lies 
broadly  upon  the  pages  of  our  history.  We  have  believed  that 
when  the  people  of  the  South  shall  once  really  know  their  needs, 
shall  see  them  clearly  and  face  them  squarely,  they  will  meet 
them  with  a  redemption  in  which  all  reproach  shall  be  annulled ; 
for  peoples,  like  individuals,  are  judged  in  the  great  assize  not 
in  any  degree  by  their  difficulties,  but  rather  by  the  manner  of 
their  dealings  with  them. 

In  conjunction  with  the  South 's  attitude  toward  the  masses  of 
the  untaught,  there  arose  also  the  problem  of  the  teacher.  If 
the  people  are  to  be  taught,  the  teacher  must  be  trained.  Upon 
meager  salaries  of  from  $25.00  to  $40.00  a  month,  for  but  a  brief 
session  of  from  three  months  to  five,  the  teacher  of  the  average 
rural  school  had  not  been  able  so  to  live  or  so  to  equip  herself 
as  to  gain  for  herself  a  better  livelihood,  and  for  her  profession 
a  larger  share  in  the  interest,  respect  and  support  of  the  com- 
munity. The  worth  was  in  the  teacher,  but  its  appeal  was  not 
potent  with  the  public  mind.  It  was  not  seen  nor  understood. 
Popularly  speaking,  the  truth  of  the  case  was  undiscovered. 

How  was  the  public  mind  of  the  South  to  be  informed  ?  How 
were  we  to  be  made  to  see,  with  clear  and  understanding  eyes, 
the  figure  of  this  worker  upon  our  essential  task — standing  pa- 
tiently at  the  center  of  our  perplexities  of  Church  and  State — 
shaping  the  public  mind  of  to-morrow,  yet  denied  the  public  en- 


BY    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  39 

thusiasm  of  to-day;  giving  the  people  knowledge  yet  dwelling 
among  us  as  unknown;  founder  of  our  hopes,  yet  a  prisoner  of 
our  indifference ;  a  creator  of  our  only  wealth— the  intelligence 
of  our  masses— yet  the  first  to  suffer  by  its  loss  and  the  last  to 
inherit  from  its  bounty. 

At  Knoxville,  at  the  University  of  Tennessee,  through  the  co- 
operation of  the  General  Education  Board  and  of  a  generous 
local  public,  the  teachers  of  the  South  were  gathered  for  «ix 
weeks  of  summer  training.  Two  thousand  were  in  attendance. 
They  were  gathered  from  all  our  States.  They  formed 
upon  that  noble  hilltop,  in  that  year  and  in  suc- 
ceeding years,  a  company  which  helped  the  mind  of 
the  Nation  to  visualize  the  significance  of  the  teacher  in  the 
common  schools  of  the  South.  In  that  change  of  environment, 
feeling  the  joy  of  comradeship,  and  under  instructions  and  in- 
spirations that  came  from  new  scenes  and  from  one  another, 
they  wrere  able  to  forget  some  things  and  to  learn  others.  There 
had  been  summer  schools  before ;  there  have  been  others  since. 
The  method  has  its  limitations  as  well  as  its  advantages.  But 
all  these  schools— and  that  great  inspiring  conspicuous  school 
especially— have  done  one  thing  which  is,  I  think,  of  equal  im- 
portance with  all  that  they  planned  or  taught:  They  have 
helped  the  people  of  the  South  to  behold  with  an  unforgetable 
distinctness  the  fact  of  the  Southern  teacher;  and,  with  that 
fact,  they  have  associated  for  all  time,  as  one  of  the  elementary 
assumptions  of  popular  interest  and  public  legislation,  the 
cause  of  teacher-training.  In  the  importance  of  that  cause  "the 
profession"  had  of  course  believed.  No  one  even  out  of  the 
profession  had  denied  it.  Few  popular  truths  in  a  democracy 
are  in  a  worse  case  than  those  which  no  one  has  denied,  Hence- 
forth, however,  the  cause  is  no  longer  a  cause  of  "the  profes- 
sion." The  South  has  seen  her  teachers.  That  vague  but  irre- 
sistible intelligence  which  we  call  "the  public"  understands. 
The  teachers  of  the  South  will  be  trained  better  and  will  be 
paid  more.  These  States,  for  their  credit  and  for  their  citi- 
zenship, have  so  resolved. 

But  it  is  a  mistake  to  assume  that  in  any  solitary  sense,  the 
teacher  "keeps  school."  The  school,  if  it  be  of  any  social 


40  THE    SOUTHEJRN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

service,  must  be  served  by  the  social  interest.  It  is  not  a  de- 
tached contrivance  for  doing  at  the  lowest  possible  cost,  and 
with  the  least  possible  trouble,  the  task  in  which  the  home  and 
the  community  take  the  smallest  possible  interest.  Indeed  it  is 
the  community  which  "keeps  school,"  if  school  be  really  kept. 
We  are  somewhat  past  the  day  in  which  it  was  generally  ex- 
pected that  a  frail  slip  of  a  girl,  trembling  between  the  heights 
of  Owen  Meredith  and  the  stern  economies  of  Farmer  Jones, 
and  within  a  bleak  little  arena  of  oily  blackboards  and  plank 
benches— must  engage  single-handed  the  raw  and  recalcitrant 
elements  of  a  future  civilization.  We  now  expect  the  eommunity 
to  help. 

The  agents  of  the  community  are  the  women  of  the  South. 
Beginning  in  North  Carolina  and  Virginia,  the  "School  Im- 
provement" organizations  of  our  respective  States  have  begun 
to  re-enforce  the  work  of  the  rural  teachers.  It  is  upon  its  sur- 
face largely  a  work  of  visiting  schools  and  improving  the  school 
houses.  A  little  cleaning  up,  a  few  flowers  in  the  yard,  a  little 
paint,  a  little  whitewash,  a  little  interior  decoratioji,  a  little  talk 
about  the  children,  a  little  effort  to  know  the  parents,  a  great 
deal  of  womanly  tact  and  human  affection ;  it  is  indeed  a  work, 
&  real  work,  even  though  it  often  follow  after  a  long  hot  drive 
over  poor  roads  behind  an  old  horse  who  is  wholly  untouched  by 
the  universal  zeal;  and  in  whom  the  census  reports  concerning 
the  illiteracy  of  our  educable  youth  seem  to  have  produced  no 
appropriate  emotions. 

But  the  deeper  meaning  of  it  all  is  clear,  it  is  the  reaching 
forth  for,  and  the  assimilation  of,  the  rural  school— despite  its 
isolation— by  the  purest,  deepest  forces  of  our  social  progress. 
The  country  schools  are  taken  up  into  our  common  movement 
forward,  and  as  they  are  rescued  from  their  isolation  they  are 
being  touched  with  a  new  significance  and  a  new  dignity.  The 
women  of  the  South  would  be  the  last  to  say  that  this  work  is 
not  sadly,  pitifully  incomplete.  But  its  beginnings  are  every- 
where apparent,  and  in  certain  of  our  States  it  is  a  work  which 
is  well  within  the  period  of  established  policies.  That  this  South- 
ern Education  Board  has  helped  in  these  beginnings,  and  has 
contributed  to  this  policy,  both  from  its  counsels  and  its  re- 


BY    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  41 

sources,  has  been  among  the  happiest  of  its  privileges. 

But  the  school  and  all  its  factors,  the  teacher  and  the  taught, 
are  at  last  dependent  upon  two  forces  which  alike  determine 
both  their  existence  and  their  efficiency;  these  are,  our  public 
revenues,  and  our  public  opinion.  They  are  not  synonomous. 
There  may  be  inadequate  revenues,  informed  by  a  wholesome 
public  spirit  and  directed  by  just  and  intelligent  conceptions  of 
public  policy.  Or  there  may  be  abundant  revenues,  misdi- 
rected by  undemocratic  assumptions,  and  neutralized  by  popu- 
lar misconceptions  or  by  a  perverted  public  sentiment.  The 
schools  have  needed  money.  They  have  needed  money,  how- 
ever, as  no  cold  dead  finality  of  their  life,  but  as  touched  by 
clear  thinking,  just  ideas  and  wise  administration.  If  money 
be  the  one  hand  by  which  society  shapes  the  development  of  the 
school,  our  public  opinion  is  the  other.  These  are  indeed  the 
two  hands  that  are  now  touching  and  forming  all  our  institu- 
tions of  public  education. 

You  know  how  from  the  first — and  how  insistently — this 
Board  has  worked  in  behalf  of  "more  money  for  the  public 
schools."  The  need  was  all  but  desperate,  the  struggle  has  con- 
stituted the  most  aggressive  and  unyielding  element  in  our  whole 
program  of  agitation.  It  is  a  work  which  has  been  entrusted — 
like  all  the  Southern  work  of  our  organization — to  a  body  known 
as  the  Campaign  Committee,  a  committee  formed  exclusively  of 
the  members  of  the  Board  resident  or  at  work  within  the  South- 
ern States.  Its  Chairman  is  Dr.  Edwin  A.  Alderman,  Presi- 
dent of  the  University  of  Virginia,  and  its  additional  members 
are  Messrs. Frissell, Mitchell,  Fries,  Claxton,  Bowie  and  Murphy. 
We  have  appealed  to  all  cur  countrymen;  but  our  chief 
appeal  has  been  to  the  local  communities  of  the  South,  to 
the  people  of  the  school  district  or  the  county  or  the  State, 
pressing  home  the  argument  for  local  taxation  and  urging  upon 
the  people"  the  wisdom  and  the  necessity  of  giving  more  largely 
of  their  own  means  for  their  own  schools.  The  leaders  in  this 
movement,  within  and  without  the  Southern  Education  Board, 
have  had  in  many  cases  to  fight  over  the  battle  for  the  very  the- 
ory of  popular  education  at  the  public  cost ;  have  had  to  contend 
in  other  cases  for  the  very  right  of  the  community  to  tax  its 


42  THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

own  property  for  its  own  schools.  The  constitutional  limita- 
tions upon  this  right  have  in  a  number  of  our  States  been  seri- 
ous; and  in  some  have  been  practically  prohibitive.  The  schools 
have  been  chiefly  cared  for  by  the  general  funds  of  the  general 
State  treasury,  a  method  which  has  not  merely  resulted  in  in- 
adequate revenues,  but  has  weakened  the  forces  of  local  initia- 
tive. 

But  the  right  of  local  taxation  once  obtained,  it  has  been  ne- 
cessary to  win  the  people  of  the  school  district  or  the  county  'o 
the  exercise  of  this  right.  This  undertaking  has  involved  what 
has  been  called  an  "educational  campaign."  Public  meetings 
are  arranged  from  county  to  county  or  from  district  to  district 
within  the  area  to  be  canvassed  by  the  debate;  and,  the  litera- 
ture of  the  subject  having  been  distributed  in  advance,  the  peo- 
ple are  addressed  from  the  stump  by  public  speakers  whom  they 
have  learned  to  know  and  trust.  This  appeal,  be  it  remembered 
both  within  the  South  and  out  of  it,  has  seldom  been  made  in 
vain;  but  the  task  of  conveying  it  to  the  people,  of  assuming 
and  conducting  the  arduous  detail  of  it — especially  through  the 
long  summer  months  when  the  Southern  farmer  has  the  leisure 
and  the  mood  for  public  questions— is  a  burden  involving  sacri- 
fices of  which  the  woman  of  ease  or  the  man  of  the  office  has 
seldom  dreamed. 

Such  funds  as  the  Board  has  had  at.  its  command,  have  large- 
ly gone  into  work  like  this.  This  Board  has  given  no  money  to 
educational  institutions;  it  has  had  none  whatever  to  give.  Its 
resources  have  gone  rather  into  the  task,  have  gone  solely  into 
the  task,  of  enabling  the  leaders  and  teachers  of  our  Southern 
communities  to  bring  home  to  our  people  the  meaning  and  privi- 
lege of  self-dependence.  No  one  has  been  paid  to  make  speeches ; 
but  through  the  limited  funds  of  this  Board  a  literature  has 
been  created  and  circulated,  the  actual  expenses  of  certain  in- 
vited speakers  have  been  defrayed,  and  the  whole  local  move- 
ment of  local  interest  and  of  collective  responsibility  has  thus 
been  quickened  and  re-inforced.  About  $25,000  per  year  his 
been  expended,  directly  or  indirectly  in  this  work.  Such  funds 
have  come  from  no  fixed  endowment,  but  have  represented  the 
personal  gifts  of  a  small  group  of  men,  Southern  as  well  as 


BY    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  43 

Northern,  who  from  year  to  year  have  responded  to  the  appeal 
presented  by  a  definite  estimate  of  the  work  to  be  undertaken. 
The  total  is  but  a  small  sum,  and  yet  I  think  it  may  be  fairly 
said  that  it  is  a  sum  which  has  entered  as  one  of  the  vital  fac- 
tors into  that  significant  total  of  the  $14,000,000  of  increased 
annual  revenues  which,  within  the  past  five  years,  have  been 
voted  for  Public  Education  in  our  Southern  States. 

Yet  the  campaign  for  public  revenues  has  also  represented  a 
campaign  for  public  opinion — its  information,  persuasion  and 
direction.  The  struggle  for  money  has  involved  a  struggle  for 
ideas.  A  community  may  reverse  a  vote  for  larger  school  appro- 
priations—though no  community  ever  has— but  the  ideas  which 
have  once  moved  it  to  a  policy  of  local  sacrifice  for  the  local  wel- 
fare, it  cannot  reverse.  These  will  abide,  and  will  work  their 
work,  and  will  achieve  their  triumph. 

It  is  this  work  of  this  Board,  the  informing  of  our  public 
opinion  and  the  education  of  our  public  sentiment,  which  in  my 
own  personal  judgment  has  been  its  cardinal  contribution  to  the 
recent  history  of  the  South.  It  has  also  helped  to  inform  the 
North.  It  has  performed  for  our  Southern  States  a  signal  ser- 
vice in  the  cogency  and  the  fullness  with  which  it  has  been  able 
to  address  itself  to  the  national  mind,  correcting  much  of  the 
misinformation  and  many  of  the  misconceptions  which  have  held 
sway  against  us,  and  establishing  a  clearer  and  juster  concep- 
tion of  our  conditions.  But,  after  all,  what  we  know  about  our- 
selves is  of  vastly  more  importance  than  what  others  may  know 
or  may  not  know  about  us;  and  what  we  think  as  to  ourselves, 
our  duties,  interests  and  policies,  is  of  infinitely  more  import  to 
our  development  and  our  happiness,  than  what  may  be  thought 
elsewhere.  If  the  Southern  Education  Board  has  helped  our 
people,  it  is  chiefly  because,  in  addressing  itself  to  our  public 
opinion  it  has  helped  the  thought  of  the  South  in  reference  to 
the  things  of  the  South ;  it  has  helped  the  South  to  see  itself :  to 
look  with  clearer  eyes  at  its  own  tasks;  to  view  with  an  awak- 
ened but  untroubled  mind  its  own  necessities,  and  to  face  con- 
fidently but  not  uncandidly,  the  waiting  burdens  of  its  stew- 
ardship. 


44  THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

Talk  has  not  ended  at  the  platform.  As  much  has  been  done 
through  personal  conference  as  in  public  discussion.  The  serious 
personal  forces  of  the  South— many  of  whom  but  for  this  Board 
would  have  continued  without  personal  contact  with  one  an- 
other—have been  drawn  together.  A  fellowship  of  opinion,  a 
sort  of  moral  tradition  has  been  established.  It  is  a  unity  of 
feeling,  a  consensus  of  anticipations  by  which  no  man  comes  to 
bondage,  but  by  which  knowledge  grows  and  ideals  prevail. 
Within  this  fraternity  of  constructive  wills  this  Board  has  tried 
to  stand  not  as  an  organ  of  exclusion,  but  as  becoming— or  as 
desiring  to  become— the  medium  of  confederacy,  the  organ  and 
instrument  by  which  the  soul  of  the  South  may,  everywhere, 
find  and  hear  and  know  the  soul  of  the  South. 

It  is  needless  to  say  that  this  spiritual  and  prevailing  company 
wears  no  formal  livery.  It  is  not  made  up  of  teachers  alone. 
"Educators"  are  tolerated,  but  are  not  encouraged.  Within  the 
Southern  Education  Board  the  professional  interest  and  the  lay 
interest  are  merged  in  the  common  labor  of  the  citizen.  So 
also,  within  this  broader  company,  the  teacher  is  put  into  a 
working  alliance  with  the  community,  with  the  journalist,  the 
physician,  the  clergyman,  the  attorney,  the  man  of  affairs.  For 
this  business  is  the  business  of  citizenship ;  it  knows  no  estrang- 
ing severance  of  occupations,  it  is  of  all  the  people,  by  all  the 
people.  It  is  democracy  at  the  task  of  self-equipment. 

There  are  other  interests  of  this  Board,  but  to-day  there  is 
not  time  to  dwell  upon  them.  Few  of  its  activities  have  been  of 
greater  essential  importance  than  its  organization  of  local  co- 
operative committees  in  certain  of  the  cities  and  States  of  the 
South,  committees  which  have  aided  powerfully  in  the  develop- 
ment and  the  wise  direction  of  popular  enthusiasm.  Its  interest 
ic  the  consolidation  of  schools,  the  building  of  school  houses,  the 
development  of  high-schools,  the  creation  of  rural  libraries,  the 
progress  of  agricultural  education— these  are  but  phases  of  an 
effort  which  has  included  the  full  round  of  those  constructive 
measures  through  which  the  South  is  undertaking  her  broadest 
and  largest  task.  There  has  been  need  for  all  that  makes  pa- 
tience fruitful  and  labor  enduring. 

Adequate  resources  and  a  wise  and  aggressive  public  opinion— 


BY    EDGAR    GARDNER    MURPHY.  45 

these  have  been,  as  we  have  found,  the  two  hands  by  which  the 
whole  body  of  our  social  forces  is  shaping  the  development  of 
the  schools.  But  there  has  been  something  else,  the  power  of 
which  we  have  also  tried  to  serve  and  to  increase ;  and  yet  it  is 
a  little  hard  to  name  it  or  define  it.  It  is  that  which  lies  back 
of  these  hands  and  informs  them;  back  of  our  giving  and  our 
thinking;  as  the  light  and  genius  of  the  central  brain  are  found 
in  the  creative  touch.  I  think  we  may  call  it  love — a  love  for 
childhood  and  for  the  children  which  puts  into  these  hands  that 
unaffected  reverence,  that  very  soul  of  care,  without  which  our 
money  and  our  opinions  must  be  profitless.  It  is  this  light, 
shining  in  the  eyes  and  at  the  work  within  the  revenues  and  the 
policies  of  the  believing  South — it  is  this  light  which  alone  is  the 
education  of  the  people. 


Recess  was  taken. 

TUESDAY  EVENING,  APRIL  9ra. 
MR.  GEORGE  FOSTER  PEABODY  IN  THE  CHAIR. 

The  Conference  was  called  to  order  at  8  o'clock.  After  an- 
nouncements by  the  Secretary,  the  following  telegrams  were 
read: 

PINEHURST,  N.  C.,  April  9,  1907. 
Mr.  Robert  C.  Ogden,  New  York: 

The  Conference  for  Education  in  the  South  sends  affectionate  greet- 
ings to  its  President,  with  sincere  wishes  for  his  speedy  restoration. 

Our  meeting  is  a  great  success  both  in  numbers  and  spirit.  All 
regret  your  absence.  Your  spirit  leads. 

FRANCIS  P.  VENABLE, 
GEORGE  A.  PLIMPTON, 
GEORGE  H.  DENNY, 

Committee. 

NEW  YORK,  April  9,  1907. 
Dr.  Francis  P.  V enable.  Chairman  Committee,  Pinehurst,  N.  C.: 

Please  convey  my  earnest  thanks  to  the  Conference  for  greetings 
and  good  wishes.  I  rejoice  in  prospect  of  great  progressive  work  at 
the  present  meeting. 

ROBERT   C.    OGDEN. 


46      EDUCATION  BY  THE  STATE  AND  FOR  THE  STATE. 

On  motion  of  Dr.  Poteat,  of  North  Carolina,  the  Chairman 
appointed  committees  as  follows: 

Committee  on  Nominations :  Messrs.  J.  Y.  Joyner,  J.  W.  Aber- 
crombie  and  Bruce  R.  Payne. 

Committee  on  Resolutions:  Messrs.  J.  H.  Kirkland,  W.  L.  Po- 
teat and  H.  N.  Snyder. 

The  Chairman  announced  as  the  subject  of  discussion :  Educa- 
tion by  the  State  and  for  the  State,  and  introduced  as  the  first 
speaker,  Dr.  Harry  Pratt  Judson,  President  of  Chicago  Uni- 
versity. 

EDUCATION  BY  THE  STATE  AND  FOR  THE  STATE. 

BY  PRESIDENT  JUDSON. 

It  is  highly  important  that  there  should  be  a  large  measure 
of  agreement  as  to  the  legitimate  purposes  for  which  money 
taken  from  us  all  by  taxation  should  be  expended. 

I  would  suggest  a  brief  statement  of  what  seems  to  me  the 
main  legitimate  ends  of  a  course  of  public  instruction,  in  the 
order  of  their  importance.  I  am  aware  that  exception  may 
easily  be  taken  to  the  scheme.  But  there  are  reasons  cogent  with 
me  for  maintaining  these  purposes,  in  the  order  given,  and  for 
excluding  other  ends.  Some  of  these  reasons  I  will  try  to  give. 

First:  The  primary  end  that  appears  to  rne  to  justify  educa- 
tion at  public  cost  is  this:  That  the  young  may  get  the  power 
and  the  inclination  to  earn  an  honest  living  by  honest  work. 

The  first  necessity  of  this  life  is  life  itself.  True,  there  are 
things  more  important  than  life ;  still,  the  fundamental  'employ- 
ment of  every  creature  that  comes  into  the  world  is  to  maintain 
existence.  The  task  may  be  easy  or  difficult.  Individuals  may 
find  it  done  for  them,  by  the  good  fortune  or  providence  of  an- 
cestors, and  so  may  be  able  to  devote  their  time  to  other  pursuits. 
But  the  number  in  any  leisure  class  is  after  all  not  large.  The 
great  bulk  of  men  have  to  get  their  living  by  the  sweat  of  their 
brow.  Riches  are  the  exception  and  at  least  comparative  pov- 


BY   PRESIDENT    JUDSON.  47 

erty  the  rule.  And  so  long  as  all  one's  powers  are  absorbed  in 
the  mere  struggle  for  existence,  there  is  little  good  in  speak- 
ing of  culture.  The  man  who  toils  to  the  limit  of  exhaustion  to 
keep  bread  in  the  mouths  of  his  family  cannot  be  expected  to 
appreciate  the  delights  of  aesthetic  taste.  Lighten  his  toil,  in 
other  words,  enable  his  work  to  be  more  effective,  and  you  make 
room  for  higher  things.  But  higher  things  presuppose  that  the 
lower  are  provided. 

The  great  social  questions  of  the  present  day  are  economic. 
The  great  social  disease  that  leads  to  a  very  large  share  of  crime 
and  ignorance  and  misery,  is  poverty.  The  sovereign  specific  for 
this  disease  has  yet  to  be  found.  Prophets  in  abundance  cry, 
"Lo,  here!  Lo,  there!"  But  until  we  have  some  better 
assurance  than  at  present  of  the  efficacy  of  these  loudly  her- 
alded discoveries,  we  may  as  well  adhere  to  the  old  notion  that 
a  good  degree  of  industry  and  efficiency  will  tend  very  surely 
to  lessen  poverty. 

Is  there  anything  more  pitiful  than  inefficiency?  It  matters 
little  how  intelligent  a  man  may  be.  If  he  cannot  "get  along "- 
if  he  is  unable  to  earn  a  living,  not  from  that  hard  fortune  to 
which  anyone  is  liable,  but  because  he  lacks  the  ability  to  put 
two  and  two  together  and  make  more  than  three — he  is  a  dis- 
tressing object.  And  I  am  of  the  opinion,  moreover,  that  a 
good  deal  of  what  passes  for  laziness  comes  only  or  mainly  from 
conscious  unfitness.  As  a  rule,  one  enjoys  doing  what  he  can  do 
well.  There  is  a  delight  in  successful  work — work  that  brings 
things  to  pass.  There  is  misery  in  the  shiftless  pretence  of 
doing  what  one  knows  is  ill  done.  So  that  if  one  becomes  capa- 
ble, he  is  thereby  far  less  likely  to  be  indolent. 

The  second  end  of  public  instruction  I  should  consider  to  be 
this: 

To  give  sufficient  intelligence  to  understand  the  position  and 
duties  of-  a  citizen  of  a  free  State. 

I  put  this  as  second  in  importance  merely  because  it  is  second 
in  the  order  of  nature.  Next  to  one's  own  maintenance  comes 
the  question  of  his  duties  to  his  fellow  men.  And  in  a  republic, 
in  which  each  citizen  is  on  a  par  before  the  law  with  all  others, 
it  is  evident  that  this  question  must  be  well  understood  if  peace 


EDUCATION    BY    THE    STATE    AND    FOE    THE    STATE. 

and  law  are  to  prevail  over  anarchy.  How  to  give  this  intelli- 
gence is  a  problem  that  it  is  the  business  of  every  teacher  to 
settle  for  himself  and  for  his  school.  But  of  one  thing  I  am 
positive:  the  needful  knowledge  should  come  not  merely  from 
a  term  or  two  in  the  school  spent  in  the  study  of  civics  or  of 
political  economy.  The  instruction,  like  that  in  morals,  should 
be  all  pervasive.  The  teacher  should  make  it  his  business  just 
as  early  as  possible  to  lead  his  pupils  to  understand  what  is 
meant  by  a  republic,  how  it  works,  what  are  the  privileges  of 
its  citizens,  what  are  the  simjple  principles  of  politics,  which  all 
citizens  can  understand. 

This  sort  of  training,  I  repeat,  cannot  be  prescribed  in  a  defi- 
nite curriculum— cannot  be  taught  from  a  text-book.  It  ought 
to  be  the  atmosphere  which  every  school  breathes.  However 
the  teacher  may  go  about  it,  I  believe  that  patriotism  can  be 
taught  and  that  there  is  no  better  place  to  teach  it  than  the 
school  and  the  college.  The  flag  of  our  nation,  the  great  names 
and  the  great  deeds  in  our  annals,  the  essential  meaning  in  the 
world  of  our  great  democratic  republic— all  these  should  be 
familiar  things  in  every  school  room.  Love  of  country,  pride 
in  American  citizenship — these  are  the  sentiments  which  be- 
come forces  of  vast  power  in  our  national  development.  And 
the  school  of  any  grade  wiiich  is  not  inspired  with  this  Ameri- 
can spirit  is  not  worthy  of  the  free  people  who  support  it. 

The  third  thing  which  a  public  school  should  aim  to  impart 
is  this : 

Self  restraint,  so  as  not  to  abuse  power  at  the  expense  of 
others. 

It  always  requires  self-restraint  for  men  to  live  together  in 
peace.  The  impulsive  barbarian  acts  only  as  impelled  by  his 
desires  without  regard  to  others.  The  civilized  man  learns  to 
be  heedful  of  those  around  him  and  hence  to  moderate  his  own 
selfishness. 

But  there  can  be  no  lasting  order  in  society  unless  this  lesson 
has  been  measurably  well  learned  by  the  people  as  a  whole.  To 
be  sure,  a  powerful  minority  may  temporarily  hold  a  majority 
in  check  and  compel  peace,  but  sooner  or  later  the  minority, 
however  beneficent  at  first,  will  itself  become  cruel  and  exact- 


BY  PRESIDENT   JUDSON.  •  49 

ing.  This  is  the  lesson  of  every  oligarchy— and  it  must  be  re- 
membered that  no  despotism  has  ever  existed  not  based  on  an 
oligarchy.  In  fact,  only  two  forms  of  government  are  possible 
among  men — oligarchy  and  democracy.  And  the  few  can  never 
long  be  trusted  to  rule  the  many  wisely.  The  French  noblesse, 
the  English  aristocracy,  the  Russian  bureaucratic  despotism, 
are  but  instances  of  the  many  cases  in  point.  In  the  long  ;*un, 
the  order  and  peace  which  society  maintains  will  rest  at  the  level 
of  the  average  wisdom  and  morality  of  the  nation  at  large.  And 
so  what  degree  of  self-restraint  the  masses  of  the  least  intelli- 
gent can  exercise,  becomes  of  transcendent  importance.  The 
reign  of  terror  in  France  showed  some  of  the  dangers  that  may 
come  from  the  barbarism  latent  in  the  proletariat.  That  bar- 
barism was  nourished  by  the  long  enduring  folly  and  wickedness 
of  the  ruling  class.  It  was  not  the  ferocity  of  the  Paris  mob 
that  set  up  the  guillotine  on  the  Place  de  la  Greve.  It  was  the 
cold-blooded  selfishness,  the  remorseless  tyranny,  the  grinding 
despotism  of  ages  of  aristocrats.  Robespierre  and  Marat  were 
but  the  concrete  expression  of  many  generations  of  privileged 
selfishness  and  grasping  oppression. 

The  great  lesson  of  fair  play  for  all  is  one  of  the  first  im- 
portance in  a  democracy.  It  is  of  the  very  essence  of  true  civil- 
ization—and every  teacher  should  remember  that  he  is  a  mis- 
sionary of  civilization.  He  has  with  him  for  a  short  time,  but 
at  a  plastic  age,  those  w7ho  are  to  make  the  weal  or  woe  of  the 
republic.  If  these  few  years,  or  months,  in  the  schoolroom  can 
teach  some  thoughtfulness  for  others,  some  power  of  moderation, 
some  sense  of  fairness  and  justice,  it  will  be  well  for  the  body 
politic. 

The  fourth  thing  which  the  public  schools  should  aim  to 
give  is : 

Ambition  to  do  the  best  work,  both  in  kind  and  in  degree,  of 
which  one  is  capable. 

It  is  a  great  lesson  to  know  one's  capabilities.  Too  many  of 
us  try  desperately  to  do  things  which  other  people  do  exceed- 
ingly well— which  we  should  like  very  much  to  do  equally  well— 
but  for  which  we  are  totally  unfitted.  The  important  things  for 
a  child  to  learn  are: 


50  EDUCATION    BY   THE   STATE   AND    FOR   THE    STATE. 

First :  What  sort  of  things  will  probably  be  in  his  power  to  do. 

Second:  Of  these  things  is  there  any.  one  which  he  can  do 
especially  well? 

Third :  If  there  are  several  which  he  can  do  indifferently  well, 
as  often  happens,  then  what  are  these ! 

When  the  proper  thing  to  do  has  been  ascertained,  then  it  be- 
comes all-important  that  one  should  have  an  honorable  pride  in 
doing  it  well.  That  pride  is  a  powerful  agent  in  making  a  na- 
tion strong  and  prosperous.  Nelson  signalled  at  Trafalgar, 
"England  expects  every  man  to  do  his  duty."  And  from  the 
admiral  to  the  powder  boy  every  one  did  his  best  where  he  was 
placed.  That  came  from  the  rugged  genuineness  of  English  na- 
tional character. 

On  the  other  hand  the  prevalence  of  merely  perfunctory  work, 
of  the  eagerness  to  get  one's  pay  and  of  indifference  to  earning 
it— these  are  among  the  true  signs  of  national  decadence. 

It  is  the  spirit  of  Nelson  which  should  animate  every  school 
in  the  land.  If  we  can  do  common  things  well  we  need  not  fret 
about  the  great  things.  The  servant  girl  whose  literature  fills 
her  mind  with  the  doings  of  Lady  Belinda  and  Lord  Fitzjames 
is  quite  likely  to  sweep  the  dirt  under  the  lounge  and  not  to  be 
too  careful  of  her  hair  when  she  is  cooking.  She  forgets  that 
one  can  make  ordinary  things  fine  by  the  spirit  with  which  they 
are  done. 

Turning  now  from  an  attempt  to  analyze  the  purposes  for 
which  public  education  is  provided,  let  us  consider  briefly  the 
philosophy  on  which  it  is  based.  Are  there  at  least  any  moral 
rights  involved  on  one  side  or  the  other? 

It  is  generally  accepted  in  our  country  that  the  State  may 
legitimately  do  two  things,  at  least,  bearing  on  education:  It 
may  tax  all  for  the  support  of  free  schools;  and  within  reason- 
able limits  it  may  compel  attendance  at  those  schools. 

The  right  of  the  State  to  enforce  education  is  usually  based  on 
the  general  welfare.  Education,  if  properly  directed,  as  has 
been  said,  increases  the  efficiency  of  the  young.  It  makes  them 
better  adapted  to  earn  a  living  and  it  certainly  should  give  them 
habits  of  industry  and  honesty.  In  these  ways  the  State  is  to 
that  extent  saved  from  the  burden  of  barbarism  and  crime;  the 


BY  PRESIDENT   JUDSOX.  51 

more  school-houses,  the  fewer  poor-houses  and  jails.  And  quite 
aside  from  these  merely  negative  considerations  it  is  also  true 
that  the  added  efficiency  given  by  education  to  that  extent  in- 
creases the  total  resources  of  society.  It  adds  to  the  general 
power  and  to  the  general  happiness. 

But  if  for  these  reasons  the  State  may  justly  enforce  educa- 
tion, on  what  grounds  may  the  State  levy  a  general  tax  and 
with  the  proceeds  maintain  a  system  of  free  schools? 

The  State  would  not  be  a  State  if  it  did  not  have  the  power  to 
compel  people  to  do  what  they  do  not  wish  to  do.  Who  wants 
to  pay  taxes  at  all?  In  such  a  problem  as  that  of  education, 
then,  the  only  real  question  is:  Would  the  end  in  view  be  at- 
tained by  a  system  of  private  or  privately  endowed  schools 
alone?  The  question  needs  only  to  be  stated  in  order  to  bring 
the  negative  answer.  While  if  the  State  should  withhold  its 
hand,  private  endowments  might  largely  increase,  yet  merely 
the  experience  of  England  shows  plainly  that  such  endowments 
would  be  little  more  than  a  drop  in  the  bucket. 

The  obvious  fact  is,  that  universal  education  is  simply  a  phase 
of  democracy.  And  it  is  impracticable  unless  the  democratic 
State  attains  this  prime  democratic  imperative  by  the  democratic 
means  of  universal  contribution. 

There  are  other  agencies  for  the  general  welfare  which  our 
democratic  American  State  employs.  Doubtless  private  enter- 
prise would  serve  to  transmit  letters  as  efficiently  as  it  does 
express  packages  or  telegrams.  But  it  may  well  be  doubted 
whether  every  remote  corner  of  our  vast  country  would  under 
that  system  be  reached  by  the  postal  service.  And  it  surely 
cannot  be  doubted  that  a  two-cent  stamp  under  these  conditions 
would  be  vastly  less  athletic  than  is  that  which  now  bears  the 
benign  countenance  of  George  Washington.  And  so  it  is  that 
our  postal  service  belongs  to  us  all.  It  is  for  the  same  reason 
that  we  have  a  national  army,  a  national  navy,  a  national  weather 
bureau;  the  ends  sought  by  these  branches  of  the  public  service 
could  not  adequately  be  attained  under  private  initiative.  The 
same  thing  precisely  is  true  of  general  education. 

Whether  It  is  advisable  for  the  State  to  monopolize  education 
as  it  does  the  transmission  of  the  mails,  is  quite  another  matter. 


52      EDUCATION  BY  THE  STATE  AND  FOR  THE  STATE. 

It  makes  little  difference  who  brings  me  my  letter  so  long  as  I 
get  it.  But  while  it  is  quite  true  that  I  have  no  right  to  let  my 
child  grow  up  in  ignorance,  it  is  also  true  that  there  are  many 
ways  of  training  a  child.  Hence,  so  long  as  the  just  demands 
of  the  State  are  met,  surely  I  should  have  the  widest  possible 
liberty  in  the  choice  of  means. 

The  public  schools,  I  am  satisfied,  are  as  vital  a  part  of  our 
American  system  as  is  universal  suffrage,  or  a  republican  form 
of  government.  But  the  work  to  be  done  is  so  vast,  the  sound 
methods  of  doing  it  are  so  many,  that  we  should  welcome  every 
auxiliary  agency.  There  is  room  for  the  private  school,  there  is 
room  for  the  parish  school,  there  is  room  for  the  endowed  acad- 
emy and  college;  and  the  wholesome  rivalry  of  all  these  inde- 
pendent institutions  should  tend  to  keep  the  whole  system  thor- 
oughly awake. 

Thus  far  I  have  been  speaking  of  education  by  the  State 
which  is  also  primarily  for  the  State.  And,  as  I  have  said,  edu- 
cation by  the  State  is  usually  justified  just  because  it  is  for  the 
State  welfare. 

But  I  believe  that  education  by  the  State  has  another  basis 
quite  as  solid  as  this.  I  believe  not  merely  that  the  State  has  a 
right  to  educate  for  its  own  welfare.  I  believe  that  it  is  the 
duty  of  the  State  to  provide  education  and  that  there  is  in  the 
young  a  correlative  right  to  be  educated  and  that  for  their  own 
welfare. 

In  other  words,  no  one  of  us  is  responsible  for  his  appearance 
in  this  vale  of  tears,  and  I  hold  it  quite  as  self-evident  as  Thomas 
Jefferson's  swelling  assertions  in  the  Declaration  of  Independ- 
ence that  those  in  whose  custody  the  helpless  stranger  falls,  the 
family  and  the  State,  owe  the  child  two  things :  first,  such  nurture 
that  he  may  not  of  necessity  become  either  a  pauper  or  a  crimi- 
nal; second,  such  measure  of  opportunity  as  will  render  it  at 
least  possible  for  him  to  make  the  most  fruitful  exertion  of  his 
natural  powers. 

Society  owes  no  man  luxuries;  but  modern  humanitarianism 
holds  that  the  helpless  have  a  right  to  be  helped  by  those  who 
are  able.  Hence  the  hospital,  and  the  asylum,  and  the  home  for 
the  indigent  stand  out  in  bold  relief  as  characteristic  social  facts 


BY   PRESIDENT    JUDSON  OO 

of  our  age.  It  is  not  at  all  different  in  principle  and  vastly 
sounder  in  practice  to  apply  our  humanitarian  energies  to  the 
prevention  of  helplessness.  The  aged  pauper  is  a  failure— let 
us  keep  him  from  utter  misery.  But  the  child  is  not  a  mere  ani- 
mated human  unit.  He  has  within  him  the  potentiality  of  end- 
less beneficent  activity  for  himself  and  for  his  fellows.  What- 
ever we  do  for  the  aged  social  failure  is  done  once.  Whatever 
we  do  for  the  child  is  multiplied  a  thousand  fold. 

Duty  and  wisdom  alike,  then,  dictate  that  the  State  should  see 
to  it  that  no  default  of  the  family  should  wreck  these  fair  pros- 
pects of  its  future  men  and  women.  And  both,  as  I  have  said, 
I  think,  have  a  right  to  demand  from  the  State  to  be  put  in  rea- 
sonable harmony  with  their  environment. 

But  you  say,  this  is  socialism.  No.  I  disbelieve  so  utterly  in 
the  possibility  of  socialism  as  the  fundamental  principle  in  the 
organization  of  society  that  I  have  no  fear  of  agencies  which 
are  socialistic;  and  those  agencies  in  modern  democratic  States 
are  very  numerous.  Whatever  the  State  does  for  the  general 
welfare — the  postal  service,  improved  means  of  communication, 
the  ownership  of  municipal  water  and  light,  care  for  the  gen- 
eral health,  support  of  the  indigent  and  defective — all  this  is 
socialistic.  But  I  believe  that  it  is  rational  as  well.  It  is  far 
from  being  socialism. 

If  the  State  owes  its  young  a  fair  proportion  of  education, 
the  question  at  once  confronts  us,  what  is  a  fair  proportion? 
In  other  words,  what  shall  be  the  limit  of  State  action? 

I  said  a  moment  since  that  one  of  the  things  a  child  has  a 
right  to  demand  from  society  is  suck  measure  of  opportunity 
as  will  render  it  at  least  possible  for  him  to  make  the  most  fruit- 
ful exertion  of  his  natural  powers. 

This  merely  means  that  everyone,  within  reasonable  limits, 
should  be  offered  a  chance,  and  those  reasonable  limits  of  course 
depend  upon  the  ability  of  society  to  do.  The  same  things  can- 
not be  expected  from  a  poor  and  struggling  community  which 
may  well  be  done  by  one  that  is  well-established  and  wealthy. 
Further,  "reasonable  limits"  will  imply  a  just  proportion  in 
expenditure. 

Moreover,  men  who  are  in  the  midst  of  educational  work  are 


54  EDUCATION  BY  THE  STATE  AND  FOR  THE  STATE 

aware  that  in  fact  education  grows  down,  rather  than  up, 
If  we  want  thorough  district  and  graded  schools,  we  must 
plant  at  judicious  intervals  well-organized  and  well-supported 
high  schools.  But  if  the  high  school  is  to  be  vigorous  in  its 
action  and  broad  in  its  scope,  the  higher  learning  of  the  col- 
leges must  be  brought  into  close  relations  with  the  secondary 
training  of  the  high  school.  The  college  invigorates  the  school 
below  it,  as  in  turn  that  reacts  on  primary  education.  In 
other  words,  I  do  not  believe  that  any  link  in  the  chain 
can  safely  be  neglected.  The  technical  training  of  the  engi- 
neer, the  physician,  the  teacher,  and  the  lawyer,  the  refined 
culture  of  liberal  learning,  the  scientific  activity  of  the  geologi- 
cal survey,  and  of  the  agricultural  experiment  station,  the  in- 
tellectual industry  and  riches  of  the  high  school  and  academy, 
the  all-permeating  enlightenment  of  the  common  schools,  illumi- 
nating and  mellowing  everything,  like  the  sunshine  and  the 
rain— all  these  are  parts  of  the  one  system,  bound  closely  to- 
gether by  interweaving  of  nerve  and  tissue,  and  atrophy  of  one 
tends  surely  towards  paralysis  of  all. 

How  much  of  all  this  vast  educational  and  scientific  energy 
should  be  initiated  directly  by  the  State,  is  matter  for  difference 
of  opinion  and  diversity  of  practice.  In  general,  we  may  say 
that  the  East  draws  the  line  below  the  college — the  West  and 
the  South  draw  no  line.  The  States  west  of  the  Alleghanies 
have  followed  in  the  path  so  plainly  marked  out  by  Jefferson  in 
his  schemes  and  dreams  for  an  educated  democracy.  His  thought 
as  well  as  that  which  I  urge  to-night,  is  in  accord  with  this  west- 
ern ideal.  The  State  University,  in  short,  is  merely  the  organ- 
ized community  providing  a  chance  for  its  choicest  minds.  And 
we  may  be  very  sure  that  these  will  react  in  manifold  ways  to 
enrich  the  State  in  money  and  in  thought. 

Three  centuries  and  more  ago  the  Dutch  people  were  in  the 
midst  of  a  life-and-death  struggle  in  their  war  of  Independence 
against  Spain.  One  of  the  most  heroic  of  the  many  desperate 
deeds  of  that  strife  was  the  defense  of  Leyden.  For  more  than 
four  months  the  people  of  that  devoted  city  suffered  from  bom- 
bardment and  assault  and  famine.  At  last  the  tireless  valor  of 
the  Dutch  and  the  waves  of  the  ocean,  which  have  been  let  in 


BY    PRESIDENT    JUDSON  OO 

through  the  dikes,  together  drive  the  besiegers  in  flight.  And 
this  great  victory  of  a  people  who  were  lavishing  their  lives  for 
freedom  was  commemorated  at  once  in  the  midst  of  war  by 
founding  in  the  shattered  city  a  University.  Those  rugged 
Dutch  burghers  realized  that  the  richest  prize  which  could  be 
won  by  a  free  people  was  a  centre  of  that  intellectual  illumina- 
tion without  which  liberty  is  a  danger  rather  than  a  blessing. 

And  we  in  this  western  republic  whose  eastern  shore  is  washed 
by  the  same  salt  waves  that  beat  on  the  dikes  of  Holland,  can 
surely  well  spare  of  our  prosperity  to  foster  the  same  enlight- 
ened policy  which  the  Dutch  inaugurated  in  their  adversity. 

The  day  will  never  come  when  the  higher  education  will  cease 
to  need  the  results  of  private  munificence.  Harvard  and  Yale 
and  Johns  Hopkins  and  other  institutions  still  more  recent,  are 
among  the  many  monuments  to  men  who  have  preferred  to  make 
their  wealth  immortal  by  vitalizing  it  with  the  perennial  crea- 
tive energy  of  advancing  knowledge. 

But  these  colleges  and  universities,  powerful  as  has  been  and 
as  will  be  their  influence  on  the  higher  life  of  the  republic,  would 
not  alone  suffice  for  the  growing  needs  of  a  great  nation.  They 
but  supplement  the  activity  of  the  State  itself.  And  they  can 
never  take  the  place  of  the  great  public  institutions  which  are 
rapidly  becoming  so  strong  and  forceful  in  the  intellectual  de- 
velopment of  all  these  western  States ;  and  from  whatever  source 
come  their  support  and  direction,  all  must  work  together  for 
the  common  ends  of  wise  patriotism. 

The  republic  of  Switzerland  is  one  of  the  most  enlightened 
communities  in  Europe.  It  is  small  in  area,  scanty  in  popula- 
tiin,  slender  in  material  resources.  But  while  there  are  few 
great  fortunes,  there  is  also  little  abject  poverty.  And  amid 
their  rugged  mountains  the  Swiss  have  not  merely  maintained 
their  freedom.  They  have  also  won  a  position  in  the  very  fore- 
front of  the  advanced  civilization  of  our  age.  Geneva  is  the 
natural  home  of  movements  for  international  benefit— the  So- 
ciety of  the  Red  Cross,  arbitration,  and  like.  The  Swiss  poly- 
technic at  Zurich  is  the  resort  of  students  from  all  lands  for  the 
pursuit  of  applied  science  and  of  pedagogy. 

And  there  is  no  more  significant  fact  among  Swiss  institu- 


56  EDUCATION  BY  THE  STATE  AND   FOR  THE  STATE 

tions  than  the  character  of  the  public  schools.  From  the  pri- 
mary school  to  the  university  they  are  held  by  the  Swiss  people 
to  be  their  very  choicest  possession.  Wherever  else  economy 
may  be  practiced  with  the  public  funds— and  Switzerland  is  not 
rich— the  schools  are  never  stinted.  A  politician  who  should 
seek  popularity  by  proposing  to  cut  down  the  educational  esti- 
mates, would  be  quickly  relegated  to  private  life.  The  schools 
have  scientifically  constructed  buildings,  the  best  equipments, 
highly  trained  teachers.  The  people  know  what  is  going  on  in 
the  school-rooms — know  the  quality  of  the  various  teachers — 
keep  posted  on  all  improved  methods.  They  have  a  notion  that 
such  knowledge  is  at  least  quite  as  important  and  as  interesting 
as  the  latest.  In  Berne,  by  the  last  census,  98  per  cent,  of  the 
children  of  school  age  were  in  actual  attendance  at  the  public 
schools. 

The  average  intelligence  of  the  Swiss  people,  as  shown  by  sta- 
tistics of  illiteracy,  has  no  superior  in  Europe.  Here  is  a  little 
republic,  then,  from  which  we  of  the  great  republic  might  well 
learn  a  few  lessons.  In  the  development  of  our  abounding  ma- 
terial resources,  we  are  too  apt  to  adopt  false  standards  of  suc- 
cess, and  to  neglect  the  higher  duties  of  the  State. 

Education  by  the  State  should  cover  the.  whole  field.  It  should 
be  proportioned  "with  scrupulous  regard  to  the  most  pressing 
needs  of  the  greatest  number.  But  it  should  open  wide  the  door 
of  opportunity  to  all  who  have  sufficient  energy  and  ability.  It 
should  not  be  forgotten  that  each  member  of  the  State  is  in  jus- 
tice entitled  to  a  fair  proportion  of  training  and  to  a  fair  chance. 
And  this  education  wrhich  the  community  owes  to  individuals 
is  at  the  same  time  its  best  safeguard  against  anarchy  and  its 
best  assurance  of  genuine  prosperity. 

It  is  primarily  for  the  State — it  makes  a  self-supporting  and 
self-respecting  community. 

And  we  need  always  to  remember  that  after  all  the  ''wealth 
of  nations"  consists  not  mainly  in  wheat,  or  in  gold,  or  in  sugar, 
but  in  an  abundance  of  good  citizens. 


BY    PRESIDENT    HINITT  'O  i 

The  next  speaker  was  Dr.  F.  W.  Hinitt,  President  of  Central 
University  of  Kentucky  at  Danville. 

EDUCATION  FOR  THE  STATE. 

BY  PRESIDENT  HINITT. 

Through  the  courtesy  of  the  distinguished  educator  who  pre- 
ceded me,  the  subject  has  been  so  divided  that  a  most  congenial 
topic  has  fallen  to  me  for  discussion.  The  thoroughness  and 
breadth  of  his  discussion  of  "Education  by  the  State"  call  for 
the  "team  work"  which  he  has  suggested  and  which  I  hope  may 
not  be  wanting. 

The  statement  of  the  subject  before  us  is  exceedingly  sug- 
gestive in  view  of  two  tendencies  of  the  day  against  which  both 
the  teacher  and  the  citizen  need  to  be  aroused.  The  first  is  the 
danger  of  our  educational  processes  becoming  the  occasion  of 
mere  bookishness  in  the  student.  On  the  one  side,  we  all  recog- 
nize the  danger  in  the  case  of  a  certain  class  of  students  that 
their  educational  ideals  may  be  realized  in  the  mere  attainment 
of  a  certain  facility  in  the  mastery  of  books  and  topics  of  study 
without  the  development  of  the  larger  consciousness  of  the  rela- 
tion of  study  to  life,  while  in  the  case  of  another  class  the  em- 
phasis of  the  study  and  the  lecture  may  be  construed  as  means 
without  an  end,  with  the  result  that  the  educational  period  is 
spent  in  an  atmosphere  of  unreality,  without  the  inner  and  liv- 
ing meaning  of  education  ever  being  disclosed  to  the  mind  of  its 
subject.  In  the  strenuous  effort  that  every  true  teacher  makes 
against  the  mere  intellectualism  of  the  one  class  and  the  blind 
realism  of  the  other,  the  maxim  of  education  for  the  State  may 
serve  as  a  vitalizing  feature,  furnishing  inspiration  and  direc- 
tive force  equally  needed  by  all.  The  second  tendency  is  one 
widely  illustrated  by  many  phases  of  present-day  life,  in  the 
small  world  of  the  school  or  college  just  as  truly  as  in  the  larger 
world  beyond.  I  refer  to  what  may  be  termed  the  excess  of  indi- 
vidualism of  our  national  life.  Far  be  it  from  me  to  depreciate 
the  splendid  individualism  that  in  past  days  enabled  our 
forefathers  to  brave  the  wilds,  hew  down  the  forest,  people  the 


58  EDUCATION    OF    THE    SOUTH 

prairies  and  add  to  the  older  Commonwealth  the  splendid  vigor 
of  the  West;  and  equally  so,  let  me  say,  to  belittle  the  quality 
of  spirit  that  has  made  possible  the  marvellous  commercial  and 
industrial  developments  of  to-day.  But,  in  the  presence  of  the 
fact  that  there  has  been  a  recession  of  the  supremacy  of  the  con-, 
cept  of  the  State,  and  a  too  manifest  tendency  to  treat  it  as  an 
instrument  to  be  turned  to  any  base  use  for  material  ends,  it  is 
clear  to  me  that  such  a  tpye  of  anarchistic  individualism  needs 
the  sharp  corrective  of  "education  for  the  State,"  and  a  re- 
vival of  the  fundamental  supremacy  of  the  notion  of  the  State 
as  conceived  by  Greek  thought,  and  as  portrayed  and  illustrated 
by  the  founders  of  this  Republic. 

In  the  furtherance  of  this  discussion  we  may  refer  to  three 
principles  under  which  we  ought  to  carry  forward  the  educa- 
tion of  the  individual  in  every  stage. 

Beyond  question,  one  such  principle  is  that  education  is  for 
life,  and  that,  unless  it  produces  the  efficient  individual,  in  so  far 
the  process  is  a  failure.  The  demand  for  practical  efficiency 
is  the  dominant  note  to-day,  not  without  its  inspiration,  yet  not 
without  its  danger.  On  the  one  side  it  seems  to  correct  the  purely 
theoretical  tendency  and  to  awake  the  scholar  from  mere  dreams 
and  bare  intellectual  enthusiasm,  and  in  this  there  is  great  value, 
but  on  the  other  side  the  question  ought  to  be  asked,  Efficiency 
for  what?  To  relate  the  processes  of  the  schools  to  the  vivid 
realities  of  life  is  good,  but  to  awaken  the  enthusiasm  for  achieve- 
ment is  better  when  a  right  direction  is  given  to  such  enterprise. 
It  is  too  easy  in  this  day  to  center,  such  passionate  endeavor  on 
merely  material  ends,  to  achieve  success  merely  for  the  things 
that  perish  in  the  using.  To  separate  ourselves  from  the  devel- 
opment of  a  merely  materialistic  civilization  is  not  an  easy  task 
in  this  day,  and  anything  that  will  tend  to  strengthen  the  ideal 
forces  of  life  among  our  students  needs  emphasis  and  encour- 
agement. And  such  a  principle  seems  to  me  to  be  embodied  in 
the  maxim  "education  for  the  State."  To  create  within  the 
rising  generation  the  appreciation  of  the  truth  that  the  life  of 
achievement  is  degraded  when  it  is  achievement  for  self,  to  do 
this  by  creating  a  civic  knight  errantry  whereby  the  high  en- 
deavor of  the  individual  is  idealized  by  the  thought  of  devotion 


BY    PRESIDENT    HINITT  59 

to  a  gracious  mistress,  the  State,  and  that  it  is  the  duty  of  the 
citizen,  the  privilege  of  the  truly  educated,  to  build  his  life 
into  the  fabric  of  the  State,  to  realize  that  successful  achieve- 
ment, great  or  small,  is  a  contribution  to  the  enlargement  of  the 
State,  may  serve  us  in  this  day  to  connect  reality  in  education 
with  the  ideal  conception  of  a  type  of  citizenship  of  which  this 
nation  will  ever  be  in  need.  That  this  is  no  mere  dream  is  illus- 
trated by  the  declaration  of  faith  of  a  noted  financier  who,  then 
completing  a  great  railroad  enterprise,  said  that  it  was  intended 
to  be  in  its  larger  purpose,  a  contribution  to  the  upbuilding 
of  the  State;  that  to  open  new  territory,  to  make  the  means  of 
life  possibl'e  to  a  larger  population  by  a  new  artery  of  travel  was 
conceived  as  a  patriotic  service,  and  its  completion  a  true  bene- 
faction to  society.  Whether  the  deed  be  of  such  large  signifi- 
cance, or  merely  the  average  success  of  the  average  man,  it  is 
idealized  and  enriched  by  the  motive,  "for  the  State,"  and  to 
develop  this  consciousness  in  the  coming  workers  of  the  nation 
is  a  worthy  aim  for  our  endeavor. 

A  further  application  of  this  principle  is  found  in  its  direct 
relation  to  what  is  commonly  called,  "training  for  citizenship." 
It  is  beyond  question  that  this  is  one  of  the  most  important 
functions  of  education  and  at  no  time  more  imperatively  de- 
manding consideration  than  now.  The  injection  into  the  body 
of  American  citizenship  of  the  enormous  mass  of  raw  aliens  now 
coming  to  our  shores,  the  presence  in  the  Southern  States  of 
millions  of  ignorant  freedmen,  constitute  both  a  menace  and 
a  problem  of  the  first  magnitude.  Add  to  these  facts,  the  posi- 
tive indifference  of  masses  of  our  citizenship  to  the  highest  in- 
terests of  society  and  the  State,  and  the  very  positive  activity 
of  the  anarchistic  individualist  who  preys  on  these  conditions, 
and  the  need  of  a  trained  and  aggressive  citizenship  devoted  to 
the  highest  ideal  of  political  and  national  progress  becomes  a 
thousand-voiced  call  to  duty  to  the  American  school  and  col- 
lege. Where  else  shall  we  look  for  help  in  the  emergency  of  this 
generation?  And  the  call  to  this  service  is  not  to  be  satisfied 
by  any  formal  recognition  of  the  task.  We  have  talked  much 
and  done  too  little  thus  far.  A  more  comprehensive  programme, 
and  a  truer  consecration  of  the  teacher  to  this  task  are  urgent 


60  EDUCATION    OF    THE    SOUTH 

necessities  of  to-day.  Devotion  to  a  department  of  scholarly  in- 
vestigation may  take  too  much  of  the  time  and  enthusiasm  of 
the  scholar  and  teacher,  and  leave  him  far  away  from  the  throb- 
bing life  of  the  world  in  which  he  lives.  The  vocation  of  the 
teacher  is  too  often  construed  as  an  invitation  to  retirement  and 
repose  among  dead  things,  while  the  busy  world,  its  struggles 
and  strife,  its  living  issues  and  occupations  becomes  remote  and 
unreal.  Too  many  of  our  scholars  are  content  with  "the  talent 
that  is  perfected  in  solitude,"  and  forget  the  necessity  of  the 
type  of  character  which  is  developed  in  the  stream  of  the  world. 
Into  the  life  of  the  teachers  of  the  nation  there  needs  to  come  in 
full  power  the  truth  that  education  is  for  the  State,  and  that 
our  educational  system  needs  to  gird  itself  afresh  to  the  doing 
of  this  duty.  A  broader  programme  of  training  is  needed,  the 
essence  of  which,  however,  is  the  character  of  the  teacher,  him- 
self the  example  and  inspiration  of  devotion  to  the  State. 

A  third  regulative  principle  of  educational  endeavor  is  the 
enlargement  of  the  life  of  the  individual  through  culture.  And 
here  again,  the  maxim  under  discussion  has  its  place.  Culture 
may,  and  often  does,  degenerate  into  a  mere  dilletanteism.  The 
renaissance  for  which  we  wait  to-day  will  never  be  realized  by  a 
culture  that  is  not  essentially  for  the  State.  The  glory  of  the 
State,  as  often  repeated,  is  not  to  be  found  in  her  "far  flung 
battle  line"  nor  in  her  freighted  argosies  on  every  sea;  not  in 
material  resources  nor  in  any  manifestation  of  visible  power. 
Her  real  glory  is  in  her  citizens  of  character  and  culture  who 
find  expression  for  such  qualities  in  the  large  opportunities  of 
social  service.  That  there  is  an  increasing  number  of  such  is  one 
of  the  hopeful  signs  of  the  present  day.  That  recruits  for  such 
service  shall  be  provided  in  increasing  numbers  is  to  be  deter- 
mined by  an  educational  system  which  insists  on  culture  "for 
the  State"  as  the  hall-mark  of  the  truly  educated  man. 

It  is  not  only  in  the  range  of  general  educational  work  that 
this  principle  may  be  of  value.  It  ig  suggestive  as  we  look  to 
associated  educational  endeavor.  Unfortunately,  it  is  not  always 
the  case  that  brethren  of  the  educational  world  dwell  together 
in  unity.  A  lack  of  sympathy  has  sometimes  been  expressed 
even  in  connection  with  the  aims  of  this  Conference,  broad  as  is 


BY    PRESIDENT    HINITT  61 

its  platform  and  unselfish  its  purpose.  And,  the  usual  limita- 
tions of  human  nature  have  found  abundant  opportunity  for  ex- 
pression in  this  as  in  every  associated  effort  for  the  advancement 
of  a  common  cause.  To  my  mind,  the  conspicuous  feature  of 
this  Conference,  the  one  thing  that  signalizes  the  largeness  of 
its  spirit  and  aim  is  that  it  is  devoted  to  the  highest  interests 
of  the  State.  Its  platform  is  large  enough,  its  programme  broad 
enough,  for  every  earnest  worker  in  the  field  of  education  in  the 
South,  and  that  because  its  sole  aim  is  the  increase  of  oppor- 
tunity for  all,  the  uplift  by  popular  education  of  the  whole  of 
this  broad  territory.  In  such  a  work,  in  the  presence  of  such  a 
great  problem,  of  such  crying  needs,  there  is  no  room  for  the 
captious  critic,  no  place  for  the  one  whose  patriotism  is  geo- 
graphically defined.  'The  work  to  be  done  in  this  fair  land  is  so 
great  that  the  cry  "for  the  State"  here  raised  should  be  a  suf- 
ficient magnet  to  hold  together  in  the  common  cause  a  great 
company  of  earnest  and  courageous  workers  who  otherwise 
might  stand  apart  in  the  isolation  of  private  interests  and  enter- 
prises. 

And,  in  concluding,  may  I  say  that  this  is  the  principle  needed 
for  the  work  in  the  State  from  which  I  come.  I  bring  no  dismal 
array  of  facts  to  emphasize  the  necessity  of  such  a  programme 
in  Kentucky,  but  I  desire  only  to  say  that  the  influence  of  the 
Conference  for  Education  has  been  strongly  felt  by  a  body  of 
earnest  men  and  women  in  this  Commonwealth.  The  echoes  of 
the  meeting  at  Lexington  are  yet  to  be  heard  among  us.  In  the 
last  twenty-five  years  we  have  been  scarcely  touched  by  the  mag- 
nificent progress  in  educational  development  in  the  States  that 
lie  immediately  north  of  us.  The  recent  splendid  ^  educational 
developments  of  our  sister  States  to  the  south  have  not  been 
repeated  in  our  life.  But  there  is  to-day  a  spirit  of  noble  dis- 
satisfaction among  many  earnest  men  and  wromen  identified 
with  our  educational  system,  and  an  intelligent  and  thorough 
criticism  of  existing  conditions  that  promise  a  hopeful  prospect 
for  the  near  future.  There  is  a  new  spirit  among  the  teachers 
of  the  State.  There  is  a  growing  appreciation  of  the  need  of 
thorough  organization  of  all  our  forces  for  a  comprehensive 
campaign  of  education  that  shall  enlighten  our  citizens  to  the 


62  EDUCATION    OP    THE    SOUTH 

compelling  need  of  the  present  day.  And  when  the  spirit  of 
patriotic  educational  enterprise  is  once  fully  aroused,  I  have 
no  fears  for  the  future.  The  development  of  the  whole  system 
of  popular  education,  which  many  of  us  recognize  as  the  im- 
portant duty  of  the  present,  will  follow,  and  we  too  shall  share 
to  the  full  in  the  inspiration  of  progress  represented  in  this 
Conference  of  "education  for  the  State." 


The  closing  address  of  the  evening  was  by 'Prof.  Wickliffe 
Rose,  of  Nashville,  Tennessee,  the  recently  elected  Agent  of  the 
Peabody  Education  Fund.  Unfortunately  no  report  of  this  ad- 
dress is  available.  * 


SECOND  DAY,  WEDNESDAY,  APRIL  10 

SUPERINTENDENT  SEYMOUR  A.  MYNDERS  IN  THE  CHAIR. 

The  Conference  was  called  to  order  at  10  o'clock.  The  Chair- 
man of  the  Executive  Committee  announced  that  the  delega- 
tions from  the  several  States  were  invited  to  meet  in 
different  rooms  of  the  hotel,  at  4:30  o'clock  Wednesday  after- 
noon, to  discuss  the  educational  interests  of  their  respective 
States  with  especial  reference  to  the  following  particulars: 

1.  To  multiply  and  energize  local  school  leagues,  and  to  cor- 
relate them  with  the  central  executive  committee  of  each  State. 

2.  How  to  enlist  the  whole  citizenship— business  men,  farmers, 
lawyers  and  preachers — in  these  leagues. 

3.  An  annual  State  Convention  of  citizens,  officials  and  teach- 
ers representing  these  local  leagues. 

4.  How  to  enlist  the  press  of  each  State. 

5.  How  to  raise  money  in  each  community  for  the  neighbor- 
hood league,  and  in  the  State  at  large  for  the  central  executive 
committee. 

6.  Publication  of  the  proceedings  annually  of  local  leagues 
and  general  State  Conventions. 

On  motion  it  was  voted  to  limit  the  reports  from  the  several 
Superintendents  to  ten  minutes  each. 

WEST  VIRGINIA. 
SUPT.  THOMAS  C.  MILLER. 

Without  doubt  the  most  encouraging  feature  of  the  educa- 
tional outlook  in  West  Virginia  to-day  is  an  awakened  public 
sentiment  throughout  the  State  in  behalf  of  better  school  con- 
ditions. This  sentiment  manifests  itself  in  many  ways.  We 


64  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

see  it  expressed  in  a  desire  for  a  longer  term  and  in  provision 
for  the  same,  in  the  payment  of  larger  salaries  to  teachers,  in  the 
erection  of  better  school  buildings,  and  in  a  general  effort  to 
make  the  school  the  center  of  the  best  life  of  the  community. 
While  these  physical  conditions  do  not,  of  themselves,  make 
good  schools,  they  contribute  very  largely  to  that  end,  and  I  am 
pleased  to  report  very  decided  advancement  in  this  respect.  It 
may  be  stated,  also,  that  there  is  a  strong  desire  on  the  part  of 
teachers  for  self-improvement.  This  is  shown  by  their  attend- 
ance at  the  Normal  Schools  and  the  Summer  Schools,  and  by 
their  interest  in  the  Reading  Circle,  in  which  course  about  three 
thousand  are  enrolled.  The  Round  Tables  and  District  Insti- 
tutes have  been  largely  attended  this  year,  and  school  journals 
are  more  in  evidence  than  ever  before. 

Last  year  7,830  teachers  were  employed  in  "West  Virginia  and 
the  number  of  school  youth  in  the  State  was  342,060.  The  total 
amount  expended  for  all  educational  purposes  was  $3,412,383.68, 
being  $9.90  per  capita  of  school  population  and  $3.23  of  the 
entire  population  of  the  State,  based  upon  the  government's 
estimate  of  the  State's  population  in  1906..  It  will  be  noticed 
that  the  average  expenditure  in  the  United  States  as  given  in 
the  last  annual  statement  from  the  Bureau  of  Education  is 
$3.49  per  capita. 

West  Virginia  has  an  invested  School  Fund  of  only  $1,000,000. 
the  interest  of  which  is  distributed  annually.  Our  General 
School  Fund,  as  it  is  called,  is  derived  chiefly  from  the  follow- 
ing sources:  A  capitation  tax  of  one  dollar  from  every  male 
citizen;  the  proceeds  of  all  fines  and  forfeitures;  interest  on 
the  invested  fund,  and  a  State  tax  of  five  cents  on  every  hundred 
dollars'  worth  of  property.  Last  year  this  Distributable  Fund 
amounted  to  $762,799,  or  a  per  capita  distribution  -for  school 
youth  of  $2.15.  Our  new  revenue  law  provides  that  this  annual 
distribution  from  the  State  Fund  shall  never  be  less  than  it 
was  last  year  and  it  is  believed  that  the  amount  so  distributed 
will  be  largely  increased.  Of  course,  it  should  be  understood 
that  this  General  or  State  Fund  is  largely  supplemented  by 
local  levies,  these  levies  on  an  average  being  about  four  times  the 
aggregate  of  the  Distributable  Fund,  this  State  Fund  thus  con- 


BY    THOMAS    C.    MILLER  65 

stituting  only  about  twenty  per  cent,  of  our  school  revenues  for 
the  Teachers'  Fund.  In  addition  to  the  local  levy  for  the  Build- 
ing Fund,  which  in  many  places  is  almost  as  large  as  the  levy 
for  the  Teachers'  Fund,  many  districts  have  bonded  themselves 
a  considerable  sum  for  new  buildings  and  equipment. 

While  our  Compulsory  Attendance  Law  is  not  so  effective  as 
we  would  like  to  have  it,  still  it  has  been  the  means  of  bring- 
ing thousands  of  our  youth  into  the  school  room,  and  among 
our  progressive  citizens  there  is  but  one  sentiment  regarding 
this  measure :  to  make  it  more  effective.  At  present  the  require- 
ment is  that  children  shall  attend  school  at  least  twenty  weeks 
each  year,  but  we  think  this  law  will  be  amended  so  as  to  em- 
brace the  entire  term  of  six  months,  the  minimum  term  now  pro- 
vided for.  It  is  not  possible  to  give  the  exact  statistics  and  the 
number  of  pupils  brought  into  school  under  the  provisions  of  the 
Compulsory  Law;  nevertheless,  the  increase  is  very  noticeable 
in  some  of  our  cities  and  growing  towns  where  the  youth  be- 
tween the  ages  of  eight  and  fourteen  years  have  heretofore  been 
employed  in  shops,  factories  and  mines. 

While  for  many  years  most  of  our  towns  and  cities  have  had 
good  school  libraries,  it  was  not  until  recently  that  much  atten- 
tion was  given  to  placing  suitable  literature  within  reach  of  the 
children  in  our  district  schools.  Now  this  movement  is  receiv- 
ing considerable  attention,  and  the  growth  of  these  collections 
of  books  in  country  distrncts  is  very  gratifying.  In  1897  there 
were  only  8,026  books  in  these  libraries,  and  this  number  had 
grown  only  to  17,000  in  1900,  but  in  1906  it  had  increased  to 
126,503.  It  will  be  remembered  that  this  number  includes  the 
books  of  village  and  district  libraries  only.  Public  and  city 
libraries  and  many  high  school  libraries  are  not  included  in  this 
list,  but  I  presume  the  addition  of  these  would  almost  duplicate 
the  number. 

As  our. law  makes  no  specific  provision  for  the  appropriation 
of  public  money  for  school  libraries,  various  methods  were  used 
by  which  to  raise  funds  for  the  purchase  of  books.  In  many 
places  an  admission  fee  was  charged  to  a  little  entertainment 
proposed  for  the  occasion;  in  other  communities  contributions 
of  money  and  books  were  received,  while  still  further,  boards  of 


66  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'*  MEETING 

education  duplicated  the  amount  that  was  raised  by  the  school. 
One  country  school  reported  one  hundred  and  one  dollars  as  the 
result  of  its  own  efforts  for  books,  while  another  in  a  remote 
interior  section  of  the  State  raised  fifty-nine  dollars.  Of  course 
in  some  of  the  towns  and  thickly  settled  communities  the  re- 
ceipts were  much  larger.  A  very  encouraging  feature  of  the 
work  is  the  fact  that  not  only  are  pupils  interested  in  the  library 
effort,  but  the  citizens  are  contributing  liberally  to  it  and  heart- 
ily aiding  the  movement  that  will  put  within  reach  of  our  youth 
a  better  class  of  literature. 

In  the  selection  of  books  the  aim  has  been,  even  with  a  small 
collection,  to  choose  books  suited  to  the  needs  and  capacity  of 
pupils  in  the  different  grades.  Neither  are  the  young  men  and 
women  out  of  school,  nor  the  fathers  and  mothers  at  home,  for- 
gotten. The  vocations  of  the  people  are  also  considered.  For 
instance,  books  on  elementary  agriculture,  fruit-growing,  poul- 
try-raising, coal  mining,  forestry,  etc.,  have  been  chosen  for  dif- 
ferent sections  where  the  people  were  especially  interested  in 
these  industries.  Not  only  are  books  chosen  for  the  libraries,  but 
good  periodicals  as  well,  especial  emphasis  -being  placed  upon 
good  illustrative  magazines.  While  in  many  districts  at  first 
the  smaller  and  cheaper  books  must  necessarily  be  purchased,  we 
feel  that  this  is  a  good  beginning,  if  the  books  are  carefully 
selected,  and  that  when  the  reading  habit  is  once  formed  in  a 
community  the  interest  will  increase,  and  books  of  a  more  val- 
uable make-up  and  of  a  higher  literary  character  will  replace 
those  first  introduced. 

A  prominent  feature  of  our  educational  progress  last  year  wras 
a  series  of  educational  campaigns  having  for  their  object  the 
awakening  of  a  better  school  sentiment  throughout  this  State. 
In  this  we  were  not  disappointed.  Meetings  were  held  in  about 
fifty  towns  and  villages,  and  about  thirty  thousand  persons,  in- 
cluding school  children,  were  in  attendance.  In  many  places 
the  largest  auditorium  was  not  sufficient  to  accommodate  those 
who  came,  and  leading  citizens  took  part  in  the  proceedings. 
Among  the  speakers  on  these  tours  were  Hon.  W.  W.  Stetson, 
State  Superintendent  of  Maine,  Dr.  A.  E.  Winship,  of  Boston;. 


BY   THOMAS    C.    MILLER  67 

Dr.  R.  G.  Boone,  of  New  York;  Supt.  C.  J.  Kern,  of  Illlinois, 
and  Capt.  E.  Miller,  of  Iowa,  together  with  a  number  of  the 
professors  from  the  University  and  other  home  workers.  A 
good  degree  of  interest  was  shown  everywhere,  but  it  was  par- 
ticularly encouraging  in  country  districts.  Among  the  topics 
emphasized  were  District  High  Schools,  Centralization,  School 
Libraries,  District  Supervision,  Better  Salaries  and  Longer 
Terms.  Undoubtedly  these  meetings  set  the  people  to  thinking, 
for  in  a  number  of  places  steps  have  been  taken  to  lengthen  the 
school  term,  and  to  provide  better  buildings,  and  a  number  of 
high  schools  have  been  established. 

Akin  to  these  campaigns  is  a  plan,  recently  introduced,  of 
holding  a  public  conference  with  Boards  of  Education  at  their 
annual  meeting.  The  Board  appoints  a  time  and  place  for  such 
a  meeting  and  generally  there  is  a  short  address  by  some  one 
previously  engaged,  after  which  there  is  a  general  discussion 
and  exchange  of  views  relating  to  the  school  interests  of  the 
district.  These  meetings  have  been  productive  of  much  good  and 
I  propose  to  make  them  a  special  feature  of  this  year's  work.  In 
this  good  service  we  have  had  the  assistance  of  members  of  our 
various  school  faculties  and  of  gentlemen  and  ladies  of  high 
standing  in  various  professions,  and  I  believe  no  agency  has 
been  more  effective  in  awakening  the  people  to  a  need  of  better 
educational  facilities. 

Four  years  ago  the  Legislature  provided  for  a  State  System 
of  Uniform  Examinations  for  teachers,  thus  replacing  the  old 
County  System  which  had  been  in  operation  since  the  State  was 
organized.  At  first  there  was  some  disappointment  on  the  part 
of  those  whose  certificates  had  been  renewed  for  years  and  by 
those  who  failed  to  receive  as  high  grades  as  they  desird,  but 
now  the  system  is  regarded  as  having  done  more  to  elevate  the 
standard  of  teaching  than  anything  that  has  ever  been  devised, 
and  no  community  would  go  back  to  the  old  plan  of  County  Ex- 
aminations. These  certificates  issued  by  the  State  Superintend- 
ent are  valid  in  any  county,  and  this  new  measure  has  had  more 
effect  in  increasing  salaries  than  the  minimum  law  itself. 
Boards  of  Education,  in  order  to  retain  the  best  teachers,  have 


68  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

been  compelled  to  advance  salaries,  and  there  is  considerable 
competition,  not  only  between  counties,  but  among  magisterial 
districts  in  the  same  county  for  the  services  of  the  more  compe- 
tent instructors.  It  is  true  that  districts  with  less  material  de- 
velopment and  scant  financial  resources  may,  for  a  time,  seem 
to  be  at  a  disadvantage,  but  the  effect  of  the  Uniform  System 
has  been  not  only  to  improve  conditions  in  the  school  room  but 
to  increase  teachers'  salaries  very  materially. 

Not  only  .are  our  common  schools,  including  district,  graded 
and  high  schools,  making  good  progress,  but  our  higher  institu- 
tions are  contributing  much  to  our  educational  advancement. 
The  West  Virginia  University,  with  a  faculty  of  seventy-five 
competent  men  and  women  and  an  enrollment  of  twelve  hundred 
and  fifty  is  the  center  of  our  educational  life,  while  our  prepara- 
tory schools  aid  many  young  men  and  women  in  their  prepara- 
tion for  the  University  courses.  Our  six  normal  schools  have  an 
attendance  of  over  twenty-two  hundred,  and  the  graduates  who 
go  out  from  these  institutions  are  doing  much  toward  the  eleva- 
tion of  the  youth  of  the  State.  Nearly  twenty-five  per  cent,  of 
the  teachers  now  employed  in  our  schools  have  had  some  training 
in  our  normal  schools  and  the  number  is  increasing  each  year. 

West  Virginia  can  justly  claim  the  place  of  pioneer  in  the 
matter  of  fixing  minimum  salaries  for  teachers.  By  reference 
to  the  Code  I  find  that  on  March  15,  1882,  a  bill  was  passed  by 
the  Legislature  as  follows: 

"Teachers  having  certificates  of  the  grade  of  number  one 
shall  be  paid  not  less  than  twenty-five  dollars  per  month ;  those 
holding  certificates  of  the  grade  of  number  two,  not  less  than 
twenty-two  dollars  per  month,  and  those  holding  certificates  of 
the  grade  of  number  three,  not  less  than  eighteen  dollars  per 
month." 

Since  that  enactment  this  provision  has  been  amended  twice, 
and  minimum  salaries,  as  now  fixed,  are:  $35,  $30  and  $25. 
While,  of  course,  this  provision  applies  to  the  entire  State,  it 
does  not  affect  more  than  20  per  cent,  of  the  school  districts, 
and  the  measure  was  rirst  enacted  to  protect  the  school  inter- 
ests of  communities  where  the  idea  of  economy  seemed  to  be 


BY   THOMAS    C.    MILLER  69 

too  dominant.  In  these  places  the  law  has  had  a  good  effect, 
and,  in  fact,  its  influence  has  been  a  helpful  one,  even  though 
the  minimum  has  been  low. 

I  am  glad  to  report,  however,  that  the  average  salary  through- 
out the  State  is  considerably  above  that  fixed  by  this  minimum 
of  the  law.  For  No.  1  certificates  the  general  average  is  $39.70 ; 
for  No.  2,  $31,66;  for  No.  3,  a  little  above  $25.  The  average 
salary  in  the  State  for  all  grades  of  certificates,  based  on  the 
length  of  term,  is  $36.90.  It  may  be  stated  here  that  salaries 
in  many  of  our  graded  schools  are  far  in  excess  of  this  average, 
in  some  places  reaching  $75  per  month  in  primary  and  interme- 
diate grades. 

In  an  effort  to  keep  in  touch  with  other  progressive  sections 
of  the  country,  West  Virginia  is  giving  increasing  attention  to 
the  improvement  of  the  physical  and  material  conditions  in 
and  around  school  buildings.  School  grounds  are  being  en- 
larged and  improved  by  fencing  and  the  planting  of  trees, 
shrubbery  and  flowers ;  school  rooms  are  being  adorned  and  fitted 
up  with  modern  conveniences,  and  a  desire  for  better  things 
manifests  itself  all  over  the  State.  Arbor  Day  has  been  ob- 
served by  the  schools  for  a  number  of  years  and  the  fine  trees 
found  in  many  school  grounds  testify  to  the  value  and  benefi- 
cence of  this  beautiful  custom.  But  not  only  does  this  good 
work  show  itself  in  the  improved  conditions  in  and  around  our 
school  buildings  and  grounds,  for  its  influence  reaches  the  home 
surroundings  as  well.  This  is  seen  in  the  little  flower  gardens 
and  better  kept  yards  both  in  town  and  country.  In  this  good 
service  the  School  Improvement  League  and  the  Civic  Clubs 
have  been  potent  factors,  and  we  look  to  the  "Women's  Federa- 
tion for  valuable  assistance  in  this  effort  for  bettering  the  condi- 
tions of  both  the  school  and  home. 

In  brief,  I  think  it  can  truthfully  be  said  that  there  is  educa- 
tional upbuilding  going  on  in  West  Virginia  to-day.  While  it 
is  more  in  the  nature  of  foundation-laying  than  work  on  the 
superstructure,  we  confidently  look  forward  to  more  favorable 
conditions  in  the  not  distant  future. 


70  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

SOUTH  CAROLINA. 
SUPT.  0.  B.  MARTIN. 

The  reports  of  State  Superintendents  of  Public  Instruction,  at 
these  annual  Conferences,  for  the  past  five  years,  have  rendered 
a  distinct  service  to  the  cause  of  education.  In  the  first  place 
these  reports  have  done  much  to  give  to  the  public  the  actual 
conditions  in  the  various  States.  Many  students  of  education 
had  examined  into  special  individual  districts,  but  now  there  is 
a  desire  for  a  full  insight  into  the  educational  conditions  in 
each  State.  A  comparison  of  reports  leads  to  a  healthy  rivalry 
and  a  worthy  emulation.  It  is  easy  to  imagine  that  we  are  mak- 
ing great  progress,  if  we  do  not  study  conditions  elsewhere  than 
at  home.  This  Conference  has  done  a  great  work  in  bringing 
together  the  representatives  of  the  various  States  and  furnish- 
ing to  them  an  opportunity  for  comparison,  for  stimulation  and 
for  rivalry  in  good  deeds.  We  may  be  actuated  somewhat  by 
the  motive  which  Col.  Jones  displayed,  when  his  chaplain  in- 
formed him  that  there  was  a  revival  in  Col.  Smith's  regiment, 
and  that  many  soldiers  were  converted.  ' '  We  must  not  be  behind. 
Make  arrangements  at  once  to  baptize  fifty  men."  What  if 
some  of  us  should  work  harder  during  the  year  to  keep  from 
being  behind  when  we  come  to  compare  notes  in  this  annual 
meeting  ? 

Every  year  it  is  our  earnest  desire  to  report  "something  at- 
tempted, something  done."  I  like  the  pledge  which  our  School 
Improvement  ^Association  exacts  of  every  member.  It  is  as 
follows:  "I  hereby  pledge  myself  to  do  at  least  one  thing  for 
the  improvement  of  at  least  one  school  during  this  year."  The 
extension  and  "observation  of  this  pledge  will  mean  much  for 
needy  schools.  It  means  the  continuation  of  the  educational 
revival  which  has  swept  over  the  South  during  the  past  few 
years.  There  is  a  vast  amount  of  work  yet  to  be  done.  We  have 
hundreds  of  communities  and  thousands  of  people  who  from 
ignorance,  indifference,  and  self-satisfaction  are  doing  practi- 
cally nothing.  I  visited  a  town  not  long  since  whose  school  build- 
ings were  antiquated,  antediluvian,  and  disgraceful.  One  of 


BY    O.    B.    MARTIN  / 

the  leading  citizens  asked  me,  "Don't  you  think  our  school 
buildings  are  about  equal  to  those  in  other  towns  of  this  size?" 
The  other  towns  of  that  size  had  nearly  all  floated  bonds  and 
erected  adequate,  modern  school  buildings.  When  you  get  fos- 
silized teachers,  with  obsolete  methods,  into  antiquated  build- 
ings, in  crystalized  communities,  it  is  a  sad  time  for  the  chil- 
dren there.  Many  times  I  long  for  a  revival  that  one  preacher 
told  the  other  about.  Said  brother  Brown,  "We  have  had  a 
great  revival  in  our  church,  the  largest  in  many  years."  "I 
am  glad  to  hear  it,"  said  brother  Wilson.  "How  many  did 
you  gather  into  the  fold?"  The  reply  was,  "None,  but  we  got 
rid  of  three."  It  is  a  genuine  revival  when  you  begin  by  cut- 
ting off  the  dead  branches.  This  is  a  very  difficult  process  in 
school  work  but  it  is  essential  to  the  health  and  growth  of  the 
organism. 

But  to  come  directly  to  my  statistical  report.  Those  of  you 
who  have  been  regular  attendants  upon  these  sessions  of  this 
conference  will  appreciate  what  the  reporter  meant  when  he 
said,  "The  speaker  made  a  few  appropriated  remarks."  It  is 
almost  impossible  to  make  one  of  these  State  reports  without 
appropriating  something  from  some  of  the  speeches  of  other 
years. 

The  regular  lines  of  endeavor  which  were  outlined  in  our 
campaign  of  four  years  ago  have  not  been  neglected  during  the 
past  year.  We  now  have  about  500  local  tax  districts,  75  of 
which  were  added  during  the  past  year.  These  new  levies  in- 
creased the  totals  by  $33,000.  Nearly  $300,000  are  now  raised 
annually  by  local  taxation.  The  number  of  rural  school  librar- 
ies now  approximates  1,000  and  more  than  200  of  these  have 
been  enlarged.  This  represents  $40,000  expenditure.  It  means 
100,000  well  selected  books  for  thousands  of  boys  and  girls  whose 
opportunities  for  reading  and  self-improvement  were  exceed- 
ingly limited.  Last  year  we  built  200  new  school  houses,  many 
of  which  were  very  valuable.  The  average  salary  of  teachers 
increased  more  than  $12  per  year  and  the  total  expenditures 
increased  $100,000.  They  now  approximate  a  million  and  a  half 
dollars  for  public  school  purposes.  It  is  worthy  of  special  note 
that  our  average  attendance  increased  18,427,  while  the  enroll- 


72  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

ment  increased  only  15,412.  Most  of  our  funds  are  apportioned 
on  enrollment,  so  it  indicates  real  progress  when  the  average 
attendance  increases  faster  than  the  enrollment.  Our  colleges 
continue  to  prosper.  The  legislative  appropriations  for  this 
year  exceed  those  of  other  years  by  several  thousand  dollars. 
These  appropriations  provide,  among  other  things,  for  a  $45,000 
practice  school  at  Winthrop  Normal  and  Industrial  College,  and 
for  41  scholarships  in  the  textile  department  of  Clemson  Agri- 
cultural and  Mechanical  College.  Both  of  these  Acts  are  efforts 
to  better  conditions  for  the  future.  The  practice  school  will 
help  hundreds  of  our  future  teachers  and  the  textile  scholarships 
will  put  more  brains,  science  and  diversification  into  our  great 
manufacturing  industry.  The  annual  State  appropriations  to 
higher  education  now  exceed  $300,000,  while  the  private  and 
denominational  colleges  are  constantly  increasing  their  endow- 
ments and  facilities. 

One  of  the  most  significant  tendencies,  in  school  and  out 
of  school,  is  the  effort  on  the  part  of  our  people  to  learn  farm- 
ing intelligently  and  scientifically.  Never  before  in  the  history 
of  our  State  have  *o  many  books  and  papers  been  bought  and 
read  on  the  subject  of  agriculture.  Never  before  have  our  farm- 
ers been  so  anxious  to  reduce  their  occupations  to  a  science, 
and  to  cut  out  lunatic,  unsystematic  and  profitless  operations. 

Two  of  our  most  important  movements  have  special  representa- 
tives here,  and  I  shall  refer  but  briefly  to  their  work.  The 
School  Improvement  Association,  under  the  presidency  of  Miss 
Mary  T.  Nance,  is  accomplishing  a  very  great  and  important 
work.  Hundreds  of  schools  have  been  made  more  attractive 
inside  and  outside  under  the  wise  direction  and  tasteful  sug- 
gestions of  this  patriotic  organization. 

We  are  getting  the  high  school  situation  in  hand  by  putting 
Hand  into  the  high  school  situation.  Our  legislature  enacted 
a  high  school  law,  which  was  approved  February  19th.  This 
Act  carries  an  annual  appropriation  of  $50,000  of  State  aid, 
and  we  are  hopeful  of  great  things  in  this  line.  Already  I  have 
correspondence  from  more  than  100  places  which  are  interested 
in  having  schools  in  their  midst.  Prof.  Hand,  who  is  our  high 
school  inspector,  and  who  is  also  professor- of  secondary  educa- 


BY    W.    B.    MERRITT  73 

tion  in  our  university,  has  urgent  invitations  from  more  places 
than  he  can  visit.  It  will  be  a  large  part  of  our  campaign  work 
for  the  next  year  or  two  to  get  this  work  properly  inaugurated. 

"When  we  review  what  has  been  done  it  merely  accentuates 
what  is  yet  to  be  done.  When  we  think  of  the  vast  possibilities 
of  our  country  and  our  people,  under  wise  guidance  and  with 
intelligent  training,  it  is  enough  to  call  from  us  that  fervid 
expression  which  the  Romans  called  eloquent  la— eloquence,  but 
if  I  talk  longer  you  will  say  that  it  is  what  Candidus  called 
loquentia — loquacity. 

GEORGIA. 
COMMISSIONER  W.  B.  MERRITT. 

Georgia  is  fully  enlisted  in  the  general  educational  awakening 
throughout  the  country.  There  has  been  a  steady  growth  in 
the  support  and  efficiency  of  our  common  school  system  since 
its  organization  in  1870.  All  of  the  703,133  children  of  school 
age  in  our  State  are  within  reach  of  a  school  house.  The  attend- 
ance upon  all  secondary  schools  and  colleges  has  been  larger 
during  1906  than  ever  before. 

An  education  campaign  has  been  systematically  carried 
on  in  most  parts  of  the  State,  and  in  many  counties  the  pro- 
gress has  been  most  gratifying.  There  are  now  in  the  State 
eleven  counties  and  130  districts  which  have  voted  local  taxation ; 
ten  other  counties,  and  160  districts  will  vote  on  this  question 
at  an  early  date.  The  appropriation  for  education  by  the 
State  in  1905  was  $1,735,000 ;  by  taxation  and  subscriptions  there 
was  raised  $1,898,092.  For  the  first  time  the  amount  raised 
by  taxation  by  local  systems  exceeded  the  State  appropriation; 
this  is  due  to  the  fact  that  the  constitution  of  the  State  has  been 
so  amended  that  counties  and  districts  can  now  more  easily 
vote  local  taxation  for  school  purposes,  and  because  the  sentiment 
in  favor  of  local  tax  has  grown  steadily. 

During  1906,  the  following  definite  work  has  been  accom- 
plished : 

New  buildings  erected,  222 ;  value  of  same,  $186,565. 


74  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

New  buildings  erected  in  towns  and  cities,  22;  value,  $254,- 
125. 

Total  value  of  new  buildings,  $440,690. 

Increase  in  salaries  of  superintendents  and  county  school 
commissioners,  $14,978;  increase  in  salaries  of  teachers,  $163,- 
536. 

Increase  in  State  appropriation,  per  child,  11  cents. 

Increase  in  enrollment,  in  round  numbers,  20,000. 

The  school  improvement  work  under  the  direction  of  Mrs. 
Walter  B.  Hill  is  accomplishing  much  good,  and  the  effects  are 
visible  in  many  communities. 

The  work  of  the  Woman's  Club  in  Georgia  is  also  to  be 
commended;  their  interest  in  education,  and  their  zeal  in  carry- 
ing on  their  model  schools  and  traveling  libraries  are  praise- 
worthy, and  have  resulted  in  permanent  good. 

The  most  radical  step  in  school  inspection  has  recently  been 
taken,  under  the  direction  of  the  Georgia  Educational  Cam- 
paign Committee,  in  the  inspection  of  county  schools,  and  in  the 
embodying  of  this  inspection  in  a  pamphlet  which  gives  the 
public  for  the  first  time  actual  conditions  in  the  majority  of 
our  rural  schools.  One  of  our  city  superintendents  thought  it 
necessary  to  see  his  schools  as  others  see  them,  and  he  invited 
one  of  the  teachers  from  the  State  Normal  school  to  pay  a  vrsit 
of  inspection  to  his  city.  How  much  more  necessary  such  visits 
are  to  the  county  schools  where  one  teacher  struggles  on  alone 
year  after  year!  Too  often  the  idea  of  a  good  school  is  em- 
bodied in  the  fact  that  a  better  enrollment  has  been  recorded; 
frequently  the  quality  of  work  is  of  minor  importance.  Only 
by  long  term  schools,  consolidation  of  isolated  schools,  local 
taxation  to  secure  more  money  to  supply  the  many  needs  which 
exist,  will  better  conditions  be  obtained. 

Perhaps  the  two  most  notable  features  of  the  work  in  Georgia 
for  1906  are  the  establishment  of  the  district  agricultural  schools, 
one  in  each  congressional  district,  and  the  establishment  and 
operation  of  the  great  industrial  school  at  Columbus. 

Of  the  work  in  Columbus,  Arthur  W.  Page,  in  the  World's 
Work,  February,  1907,  says:— 
The  city  of  Columbus,  Georgia,  is  the  first  municipality  to  meet  the 


BY   \V.    B.    MERBITT  IO 

situation  fairly  The  Superintendent  of  Schools,  Mr.  Carleton  B.  Gib- 
son, in  1904,  told  the  School  Trustees  (who  are  among  the  most  promi- 
nent manufacturers  of  the  city)  that  "an  industrial  city  of  this  section 
must  have  an  army  of  trained  workers.  If  there  is  any  excuse  for  the 
existence  of  schools,  and  the  expenditure  of  large  sums  of  money,  it  lies 
in  the  training  of  children  to  properly  take  their  places  in  life.  In  an 
industrial  community  very  large  numbers  of  these  children  must  be- 
come industrial  workers."  The  result  was  that  Mr.  Gibson  was  sent  to 
inspect  the  trade  schools  throughout  this  country;  residents  and  former 
residents  of  the  town  gave  land  and  money,  the  town  voted  an  extra 
tax,  and  the  school  was  built. 

In  Columbus  any  white  boy  who  has  passed  through  the  grammar 
school  may  be  turned  into  a  skilled  mechanic  or  a  cotton-mill  operative 
at  the  public  expense.  Any  girl  may  learn  to  make  her  living  at  dress- 
making, office  work,  or  in  the  mills;  and  they  are  all  taught  to  keep 
house.  When  the  plan  is  completely  worked  out,  any  negro  boy  who  is 
willing,  may  be  trained  as  a  carpenter,  a  blacksmith,  a  cobbler,  or  a  har- 
nessmaker.  And  the  city  is  willing  to  pay  the  cost  of  making  every  un- 
skilled negro  girl  into  a  good  cook,  seamstress  or  housekeeper. 

This  community  has  decided  that  all  its  citizens  shall  be  economically 
profitable.  It  is  making  finished  workers  of  the  school  children,  its 
most  valuable  raw  material.  It  will  have  the  reputation  among  the 
cities  of  its  neighborhood  that  Germany  holds  among  the  nations.  Co- 
lumbus will  be  known  as  a  producer  of  well-made  goods  and  a  city  of 
prosperous  workmen. 

The  scarcity  of  skilled  workmen  in  all  the  trades;  the  impossibility 
of  giving  the  masses  trade  instruction  in  private  schools,  the  ominous 
fact  that  we  have  to  look  to  immigration  for  much  of  our  skilled  labor; 
the  awakening  of  public  opinion  on  the  subject;  the  example  of  Colum- 
bus, Georgia,  and  the  beginnings  made  in  the  New  York  and  the  Phila- 
delphia school  systems — all  these  things  make  it  certain  that  there  will 
soon  be  provision  made  in  our  public  schools  in  general  for  teaching 
the  trades.  This  is  the  next  step  in  making  the  system  fill  the  needs  of 
our  time. 

Georgia  is  essentially  a  great  agricultural  State,  and  to  give 
the  boys  and  girls  in  each  congressional  district  the  privilege 
of  attending  a  high  grade  agricultural  school  is  an  ideal  situation 
and  condition.  We  expect  much  from  these  schools;  they  are 
as  yet  but  the  idea  and  hope  of  those  who  see  the  great  future 
of  our  State  and  who  are  vitally  interested  in  the  welfare  and 
development  of  our  youth  as  well  as  of  the  material  resources. 
It  is  one  of  the  giant  strides  of  the  year,  and  if  we  keep  our 


76  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

seven-league  boots  'ere  long  we  shall  have  arrived. 

Our  endeavor  has  been  to  create  sentiment.  To  this  end 
we  have  been  greatly  aided  by  the  fund  put  at  our  disposal  by 
the  Southern  Education  Board  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  on 
an  educational  campaign,  by  supplying  speakers  and  literature 
on  local  taxation  where  needed.  We  appreciate  the  help  ex- 
tended, and  we  feel  that  it  has  not  been  misused,  but  that  it 
has  accomplished  that  for  which  it  was  given.  We  have  suffered 
an  irreparable  loss  in  Dr.  Mclver  and  Dr.  Hill  being  removed 
from  our  numbers.  As  a  slight  testimonial  to  the  worth  of 
their  work  and  words,  the  State  Campaign  Committee  has  had 
published  a  pamphlet  containing  addresses  from  them,  that  their 
words  may  still  live  and  stir  the  imaginations  and  hearts  of 
those  who  read. 

The  future  lies  before  us  as  a  clean  sheet;  there  is  much 
to  write  upon  its  pages;  may  the  pages  be  not  blurred  with  our 
tears  of  repentance  that  we  have  failed  to  do  what  our  hands 
find  to  do! 

KENTUCKY. 
SUPT.  J.  H.  FUQUA,  SR. 

The  educational  outlook  in  Kentucky,  I  am  glad  to  say,  is 
more  encouraging  than  for  many  years  and  we  have  evidence 
to  believe  that  our  people  are  becoming  aroused  to  the  necessity 
and  importance  of  better  and  more  efficient  facilities  for  the 
proper  education  and  training  so  essential  and  necessary  for 
the  children  of  the  Commonwealth.  They  are  beginning  to 
realize,  as  never  before,  the  crying  need  of  better  and  more 
thoroughly  equipped  school-houses,  for  longer  terms  and  for 
more  efficient  and  better  paid  teachers! 

The  women's  clubs  of  the  State  are  now  taking  a  deep  inter- 
est in  the  work,  and  propose  to  render  all  the  assistance  m  their 
power  to  advance  the  work  by  creating  a  general  public  senti- 
ment in  behalf  of  efficient  schools.  We  recognize  them  as  wield- 
ing a  mighty  powrer  in  every  laudable  enterprise,  and  especially 
in  the  cause  of  education,  because  they  realize  so  fully  and 


BY    J.    H.    FUQUA,    SR.  77 

clearly  the  necessity  of  culture  and  refinement  among  the  youth 
of  our  country. 

We  are  greatly  encouraged  by  the  efforts  they  are  putting 
forth,  and  confidently  expect  wonderful  results  from  their  ef- 
forts. We  can  report  a  considerable  degree  of  progress  in  the 
cause  in  the  past  two  years.  Our  last  General  Assembly  made 
appropriation  for,  and  established  two  normal  schools  of  high 
grade  in  which  to  train  and  equip  men  and  women  for  the  work. 
These  schools  were  located,  one  at  Richmond,  Madison  county, 
and  one  at  Bowling  Green,  Warren  county.  The  citizens  of 
Richmond  very  generously  donated  to  the  State,  the  buildings 
and  grounds  of  the  old  Central  University,  valued  at  $150,000, 
and  the  citizens  of  Bowling  Green  donated  buildings  and  grounds 
worth  $125,000.  Prof.  R.  N.  Roark  was  made  president  of  the 
school  at  Richmond,  and  Prof.  H.  H.  Cherry,  president  of  the 
Bowling  Green  school. 

The  school  at  Richmond  opened  on  January  15,  1907,  under 
most  encouraging  and  flattering  conditions.  It  has  a  very  strong 
and  experienced  faculty  and  nearly  500  students  have  already 
matriculated.  They  are  highly  pleased  with  their  surround- 
ings, and  are  doing  excellent  work.  The  school  at  Bowling 
Green  opened  January  23,  1907,  and  its  success  surpasses  all 
expectation.  There  are  now  about  seven  hundred  enrolled  and 
new  pupils  are  coming  in  weekly.  The  faculty  of  this  school 
is  composed  of  a  number  of  distinguished  men  and  women,  who 
are  giving  complete  satisfaction  to  all  concerned. 

We  feel  a  commendable  pride  in  these  institutions  and  confi- 
dently expect  great  results  from  their  work  and  influence.  We 
trust  and  believe  that  our  Legislature  will  be  liberal  and  gener- 
ous in  their  contributions  to  these  institutions,  and  make  them 
the  peers,  if  not  the  superiors,  of  any  in  the  South. 

The  term  of  the  public  schools  has  been  increased  from  five 
months  to  six.  More  than  two  hundred  graded  common  schools 
have  been  established  within  the  last  year.  Our  denominational 
schools  and  colleges  are  all  doing  excellent  work.  The  trustees 
of  these  schools  are  putting  forth  earnest  efforts  to  increase  their 
endowments,  and  to  enlarge  their  capacity  for  doing  superior 
work.  The  last  Congress  made  an  appropriation  to  our  Agri- 


78  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

cultural  and  Mechanical  College,  connected  with  our  State  Col- 
lege at  Lexington,  equivalent  to  an  endowment  of  $500,000. 
This  will  greatly  aid  the  work  in  this  department  of  educational 
enterprise. 

Quite  a  number  of  high  schools  have  been  organized  in  our 
mountain  countries,  which  are  doing  a  work  of  inestimable  value 
for  the  poor  mountain  boys  and  girls.  The  interest  manifested 
by  these  boys  and  girls  is  very  commendable,  and  shows  that 
a  brighter  era  is  dawning  upon  our  mountain  counties. 

Our  city  schools  are  generally  well  organized  and  equipped, 
and  are  furnishing  excellent  facilities  for  giving  the  children 
a  practical  education,  which  will  prepare  them  for  college  or 
university,  or  for  the  responsible  duties  of  life. 

The  schools  in  our  rural  districts  are  generally  far  below 
the  demands  made  upon  them.  The  terms  are  too  short;  in 
very  many  cases  the  houses  and  equipments  are  a  disgrace  to 
any  community,  and  forty  per  cent,  of  the  children  do  not 
attend  school.  In  many  cases  the  teachers  are  inefficient  and 
have  no  conception  of  the  responsibilities  resting  upon  them. 

The  failure  of  our  rural  schools  to  accomplish  the  work 
demanded  of  them  is  mainly  attributable  to  four  things:  a 
want  of  money,  an  efficient  compulsory  attendance  law,  incom- 
petent teachers  and  our  superannuated  trustee  system. 

I  see  no  remedy  for  these  defects  except  in  local  taxation. 
Whenever  our  counties  will  levy  a  tax  sufficient  to  supplement 
the  State  fund  so  as  to  furnish  an  amount  adequate  to  the  de- 
mands, we  shall  have  schools  equal  to  the  best  in  any  State. 
The  friends  of  education  are  preparing  to  inaugurate  an  edu- 
cational campaign  to  permeate  every  nook  and  corner  of  the 
State,  in  order  to  arouse  the  people  to  the  importance  and 
necessity  of  furnishing  the  means  to  make  our  common  schools 
what  they  ought  to  be.  The  State  is  very  liberal  in  her  con- 
tributions to  this  work.  She  will  have  paid,  by  July  1st, 
nearly  $2,500,000  for  common  school  education  this  year,  a  sum 
greater  than  that  of  most  States  in  proportion  to  wealth  and 
population.  In  local  taxation  we  are  below  nearly  all  other 
States. 


BY    HARRY    C.    GUNNELS  79 

In  this  campaign  we  shall  try  to  induce  our  next  General 
Assembly  to  abolish  our  trustee  system  and  give  us  a  county 
board  system.  Indeed,  we  must  face  squarely  our  educational 
status  and  either  prepare  to  take  a  forward  step,  or  be  relegated 
to  the  rear  of  our  sister  States. 

We  are  proud  of  Kentucky — of  what  she  has  done  in  the  past, 
and  of  what  she  may  do  in  the  future  if  we  will  only  grasp 
the  situation.  Our  resources,  developed  and  undeveloped,  are 
unsurpassed  by  any  of  our  sister  States.  These  resources  are 
largely  undeveloped,  but  the  time  is  coming,  yes,  it  is  now  here, 
when  these  will  be  developed,  and  if  we  and  our  children  are 
unprepared  for  the  work,  others  will  come  in  and  reap  the  rich 
harvest,  and  we  and  our  children  shall  become  "hewers  of 
wood  and  drawers  of  water"  for  them. 

Indeed,  the  times  seem  propitious  for  an  educational  renais- 
sance and  it  should  be  our  hope  and  determination  to  place  our 
loved  Commonwealth  abreast  of  her  sisters  in  this  great  work. 
I  hail  with  pleasure  and  delight  the  time  when  every  boy  and 
girl  in  our  proud  old  State  shall  have  the  means  of  becoming 
trained  and  cultured. 

We  congratulate  our  sister  Southern  States  for  the  interest 
they  are  manifesting  and  for  the  noble  work  they  are  doing  in 
this  great  cause.  Let  us  join  hands  and  hearts  and  press 
forward  in  the  fight  until  ignorance  and  vice  shall  be  banished 
from  our  fair  land,  and  we  shall  occupy  that  proud  and  com- 
manding position  to  which  our  kind  heavenly  Father  seems  to 
have  destined  us. 

ALABAMA. 
SUPT.  HARRY  C.  GUNNELS. 

Last  December,  at  the  meeting  of  the  Southern  Educational 
Association  in  Montgomery,  I  was  called  upon  for  a  report  of 
the  educational  progress  in  Alabama  for  the  year  preceding. 
In  my  statement,  I  said  that  Alabama  reported  progress  but 
asked  for  more  time.  I  am  here,  however,  to-day,  to  make 
.a  partial  report  of  what  has  been  done  in  Alabama  during  the 


80  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

past  year  towards  the  advancement  of  our  educational  facilities, 
and  to  outline  and  prophesy  for  the  future. 

Those  who  are  familiar  with  educational  conditions  in  Ala- 
bama know  something  of  the  campaign  for  education  which  has 
been  made  for  the  last  three  or  four  years.  The  work  in  Alabama 
during  that  time  has  been  largely  a  campaign  work,  a  work 
having  for  its  object  the  arousing  of  active  interest  and  work- 
ing enthusiasm  among  the  people  along  educational  lines.  At 
times,  the  friends  of  education  have  felt  that  possibly  they  were 
leading  a  forlorn  hope,  but  recent  developments  have  shown  the 
truth  of  the  scriptural  injunction:  "Cast  thy  bread  upon  the 
waters,  for  thou  shalt  find  it  after  many  days. ' '  The  Legislature 
of  Alabama,  which  has  recently  recessed,  has  given  to  the  schools 
everything  for  which  they  asked  and,  in  some  instances,  has 
gone  far  beyond  the  most  sanguine  expectations.  I  do  not 
believe  there  is  a  State  in  the  South  which  can  show  the  equal 
of  Alabama's  record.  To  begin,  we  have  a  school  legislature, 
and  behind  that  school  legislature  is  a  school  governor,  who 
goes  farther  and  works  harder  for  the  educational  interests 
of  the  State  than  has  perhaps  any  governor  in  our  history.  The 
Legislature  has  not  yet  adjourned.  Think  of  these  figures: 
$550,000  at  one  time  for  the  University  of  Alabama— our  highest 
institution.  Beginning  with  the  magnificent  appropriation  the 
Legislature  has  given  to  the  Alabama  Polytechnic  Institute,  to 
the  Alabama  Industrial  School  for  White  Girls,  to  the  Normal 
Schools,  to  the  Agricultural  Schools,  to  the  Alabama  Indus- 
trial School  for  White  Boys,  to  the  School  for  the  Deaf,  Dumb 
and  Blind  and  to  the  Common  Schools,  everything  for  which 
they  asked.  A  magnificent  increase  of  $300,000  for  next  year 
and  $350,000  annually  thereafter  has  been  added  to  the  public 
school  fund,  guaranteeing  to  the  schools  of  each  county  in  the 
State  a  term  of  at  least  six  months  absolutely  free  of  tuition 
fees.  In  a  great  majority  of  the  counties  the  school  term  can 
be,  must  be  at  least  seven  months.  In  addition  to  these  appropri- 
ations for  maintenance,  the  sum  of  $67,000  annually  has  been 
set  aside  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  in  the  building  of  rural 
school-houses.  Within  four  years  there  will  be  seen  in  Alabama, 
dotting  the  hills  and  making  the  valleys  smile,  at  least  3,000 


BY   HARRY   C.    GUNNELS  81 

modern,  up-to-date,  comfortable  school  buildings.  Is  there  an- 
other State  in  the  South,  which  at  a  thirty-five  day  session  of 
its  Legislature,  can  show  for  its  educational  institutions  all  the 
way  from  the  University  to  the  schools  for  the  masses,  increased 
appropriations  amounting  to  $3,000,000?  Alabama  has  made 
that  record.  When  it  is  known  that  under  the  Constitution  of 
Alabama  only  six  and  one-half  mills  can  be  levied  directly  on 
real  and  personal  property,  and  when  it  is  further  known  that 
the  appropriations  for  educational  purposes  made  by  our  present 
Legislature  are  equivalent  to  a  tax  of  almost  seven  mills,  the 
magnificence  of  the  performance  becomes  almost  appalling. 

And  we  have  not  finished  our  work.  A  bill  has  passed  the 
House  of  Representatives,  and  is  now  on  the  calendar  of  the 
Senate,  which  makes  it  possible  to  establish  at  least  one  secondary 
school  or  high  school  in  each  county,  articulating  with  our  Uni- 
versities and  Colleges,— and  these  schools  will  be  absolutely  free 
of  tuition  fees.  This  bill  will  be  passed  as  soon  as  our  eager 
educational  Senate  can  get  an  opportunity  to  vote  on  it.  A 
compulsory  education  bill,  introduced  and  urged  by  Senator 
Reynolds,  has  passed  the  Senate  and  is  on  the  calendar  of  the 
House.  It  is  simply  waiting  for  an  opportunity  to  be  put  on  its 
passage.  Another  bill  requiring  a  term  of  at  least  six  months, 
absolutely  free,  in  each  county  of  the  State,  hangs  trembling  on 
the  calendar  of  both  the  House  and  the  Senate,  uneasily  rest- 
ing, eager  for  an  opportunity  to  become  a  law  without  effort. 
A  bill  providing  for  aid  in  the  establishing  of  libraries  in  the 
rural  schools  is  anxious  for  a  chance  to  get  on  the  "band  wagon." 
I  feel  that  I  am  not  venturing  a  doubtful  prophecy  when  I  say 
that  an  amendment  to  our  Constitution  will  be  submitted  to  the 
people  of  Alabama,  and  that  they  will  ratify  the  amendment, 
allowing  each  school  district  in  the  State  to  levy  a  tax  on  itself 
for  the  purpose  of  educating  its  own  children. 

The  friends  of  education  in  Alabama  and  our  Legislature  and 
our  governor  have  done  so  much  for  all  our  schools  that  I  feel 
it  would  be  worse  than  unkind  to  call  attention  to  any  of  our 
shortcomings.  "We  have  turned  our  faces  towards  the  East. 
"We  are  forgetting  for  the  time  those  numerous  things  in  our 
•system  which  call  for  correction,  but  are  lending  our  energies. 


82  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

our  talents  and  our  prayers  to  an  effort  to  properly,  intelligently 
and  patriotically  use  the  means  which  we  have,  believing  that 
these  other  things  will  be  added  unto  us. 

MISSISSIPPI. 
SUPT.  H.  L.  WHITFIELD. 

Measured  by  the  usual  standards,  Mississippi  shows  more 
school  progress  during  the  past  year  than  for  any  other  year  of 
her  history. 

When  the  last  Legislature  codified  the  laws  of  the  State,  prac- 
tically every  change  in  the  school  laws  asked  for  by  the  school 
people  of  the  State  was  made.  In  fact,  the  committee  on  edu- 
cation was  in  entire  sympathy  with  the  school  forces,  and  its 
report  was  adopted  practically  without  amendment. 

Among  the  changes  that  were  made  for  the  betterment  of 
the  common  schools,  were  the  following: 

1.  The  raising  of  the  maximum  of  salary  for  county  super- 
intendents from  $800  to  $1,800  per  year. 

2.  A  law  providing  that  when  two  hundred  qualified  electors 
of  a  county  petition  for  a  certain  school  tax,  the  Board  of  Super- 
visors shall  submit  the  same  to  an  election ;  and  if  a  majority  of 
the  votes  are  for  the  tax,  the  Board  shall  levy  the  tax  and  con- 
tinue to   levy   it  until   another   election   shall  have  been  held 
on  the  subject.     Under  the  old  law,  the  Board  of  Supervisors 
had  full  discretion  in  the  matter  of  levying  school  taxes,  and 
sometimes  refused  to  make  the  levy  when  the  taxpayers  were 
overwhelmingly  in  favor  of  it. 

3.  A  law  providing  for  public  aid  to  school  libraries.     While 
the  reports  will  not  be  made  until  October,  I  am  sure  that  not 
less  than  five  hundred  libraries  have  been  established  in  the 
State  since  the  law  went  into  effect. 

4.  Provision  for  taxation  for  high  schools. 

If  the  school  laws  are  not  as  they  ought  to  be  in  Mississippi, 
it  is  not  because  the  Legislature  was  unwilling  to  make  them 
as  the  educational  leaders  thought  they  should  be.  The  gen- 


BY   H.    L.    WHITFIELD  »O 

eral  agitation  for  a  better  school  sentiment  has  been  waged  dur- 
ing the  year.  Last  September  six  counties,  as  such,  for  the  first 
time  levied  taxes  for  their  schools.  Almost  one  million  and 
a  half  dollars  has  been  put  into  the  building  of  four  hundred  and 
sixty-eight  school  buildings.  Of  this  sum  by  far  the  greater 
part  was  put  into  handsome  brick  buildings  in  the  towns.  The 
length  of  term  of  our  town  and  village  schools  is  now  prac- 
tically nine  months,  and  for  the  rural  schools  something  less 
than  seven  months. 

After  more  than  eight  years  as  State  Superintendent,  I  can 
report  for  the  first  time,  that  the  people  of  Mississippi  not  only 
want  good  schools,  but  are  willing  to  pay  for  them.  I  am  certain 
on  another  question,  and  that  is  that  our  people  are  abundantly 
able  to  give  their  children  just  as  good  schools  as  children 
anywhere  enjoy.  What  my  State  needs  just  now  above  all 
other  things,  educationally,  is  local  leadership  to  take  this 
splendid  public  sentiment  and  our  sufficient  possible  resources, 
and  to  organize  the  one  for  an  intelligent  use  of  the  other. 

As  I  sat  on  this  stage  and  heard  the  optimistic  reports  of  my 
colleagues,  all  facts,  I  could  not  help  believing  that  that  por- 
tion of  the  audience  not  familiar  with  the  actual  situation, 
would  get  a  wrong  impression  as  to  the  real  conditions  yet  ob- 
taining in  the  rural  sections  of  the  South.  It  is  true  that  dur- 
ing the  last  few  years  school  revenues  have  increased  over  100 
per  cent.,  that  terms  have  doubled,  and  that  houses,  on  the 
whole,  have  been  greatly  improved ;  yet  when  one  goes  to  the 
remotest  rural  districts,  as  I  do,  and  sees  the  little  school- 
house,  often  uncomfortable,  and  seldom  beautiful,  and  the  honest 
hearted,  but  untrained  and  inexperienced  teacher  that  often 
presides  there,  he  is  forced  to  the  conclusion  that  the  South 
is  yet  far  from  having  her  common  schools  developed  to  the 
point  where  they  can  offer  to  our  children  the  advantages  for 
that  preparation  so  essential  for  the  complex  life  in  which  they 
must  live  and  work. 

The  South,  with  her  soil,  climate,  timber,  water-power,  coal, 
iron,  and  her  other  rich  resources,  has  been  discovered  to  the 
outside  world,  and  already  a  large  portion  of  these  rich  bless- 
ings has  passed  from  the  hands  of  those  who  inherited  them 


84  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

from  their  fathers,  and  is  now  enriching  others  who  have  been 
attracted  to  this  beautiful  section.  Their  products  meanwhile 
are  increasing  the  taxable  values  of  other  sections.  The  contest 
cannot  be  delayed;  our  people  must  be  prepared  for  the  20th- 
century  work  or  they  will  have  to  serve  others  in  a  land  where 
it  is  their  inherent  right  to  be  princes  and  kings. 

In  my  humble  judgment,  a  person  commits  treason  when, 
because  of  selfishness,  greed,  bigotry,  or  for  whatever  cause,  he 
opposes  this  movement  looking  to  the  emancipation  of  our  people 
and  the  bringing  them  into  their  rightful  inheritance.  I  be- 
lieve that  when  God  gave  us  this  mild  and  salubrious  climate, 
this  rich  and  varied  soil,  this  almost  exhaustless  supply  of  tim- 
ber, this  water  supply,  these  mountains  filled  with  coal  and  iron, 
and  when  He  caused  the  richest  and  most  potent  blood  to  inhabit 
these  parts,  He  at  the  same  time  committed  to  this  blood  the 
high  responsibility  of  developing  these  beautiful  resources; 
and  if  we  fail  in  making  preparation  for  so  great  a  work,  but 
permit  others  to  come  here  and  do  it,  we  sin  against  our  highest 
opportunities,  and  fail  to  execute  the  high  errand  on  which  we 
have  been  sent.  Is  it  not  time  for  our  people  to  come  into 
possession  of  their  own?  Should  we  be  satisfied  with  any  less 
high  standard  of  work  for  our  people  than  prevails  in  other 
sections  ? 

The  South  can  do  things.  Let  us  get  ready  for  the  great 
work  that  lies  out  just  before  us. 

LOUISIANA. 

SUPT.    J.    B.    ASWELL. 

Superintendent  Aswell's  address  was  based  upon  a  compila- 
tion of  figures  showing  the  comparative  growth  of  the  public 
school  system  of  Louisiana  during  the  past  three  years.  The 
following  topics  were  treated  in  order :  the  growth  of  the  teach- 
ing force,  the  improvement  of  qualifications,  the  increase  in  sal- 
aries, the  lengthening  of  the  school  term,  the  accumulation  of 
school  property,  school-house  equipments,  the  increase  in  enroll- 


BY    J.    B.    AS  WELL  85 

ment  and  attendance  of  pupils,  the  amount  per  capita  expended, 
special  school  taxes  voted,  the  increase  in  the  number  of  author- 
ized high  schools  and  the  general  financial  condition  of  the 
school  funds. 

Certain  striking  features  of  this  growth  were  brought  out  and 
emphasized  as  follows: 

While  in  general  there  has  been  a  tendency  in  the  public 
schools  of  the  United  States  toward  a  decrease  in  the  number  of 
male  instructors,  it  is  a  significant  fact  that  in  Louisiana  the 
increase  of  salaries  during  the  past  three  years  has  brought  about 
a  large  increase  in  the  number  of  men  employed  in  public 
school  work. 

During  the  period  of  three  years  there  has  been  an  increase 
in  the  number  of  white  teachers  employed  of  1,327  and  an  in- 
crease in  the  number  of  pupils  enrolled  of  13,273. 

The  number  of  public  school-houses  has  decreased  529.  This 
was  brought  about  by  the  consolidation  of  schools  in  various 
sections  and  has  made  possible  the  better  classification  and  grad- 
ing of  pupils,  tending  to  intensive  rather  extensive  methods  of 
education. 

The  number  of  teachers  employed  who  have  been  specially 
trained  in  normal  schools  has  increased  101. 

Teachers'  salaries,  including  all  grades,  have  been  increased 
at  the  rate  of  $7.99  a  month  during  each  of  the  three  years; 
that  is,  the  average  teacher  is  to-day  receiving  a  salary  of  $24 
a  month  more  than  was  paid  three  years  ago.  The  average 
teacher's  salary  below  the  high  school  in  1904  was  $36.99;  in 
1905,  it  was  $42.89,  and  in  1906,  it  had  reached  $49.11.  The 
salaries  below  the  high  school,  therefore,  are  shown  to  have  in- 
creased at  the  rate  of  $6.06  per  month. 

The  average  salary  of  the  high  school  principal  is  now  $1,333,- 
33  per  year.  This  increased  average  has  been  accomplished 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  six  parishes  in  the  State  continue  to  pay 
their  principals  salaries  of  from  $30  to  $38  per  month— one  pay- 
ing even  as  low  as  $27.80.  If  these  six  parishes  were  eliminated 
the  average  would  be  even  more  creditable. 

In  1904  local  school  taxes  were  voted  in  forty-six  districts; 
in  1905,  in  seventy-six  districts.  The  amount  of  local  taxes  col- 


86  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

lected  in  1904  was  $90,000;  in  1905,  $161,000,  and  in  1906, 
$252,000. 

The  number  of  school  districts  now  transporting  pupils  to 
central  schools  is  thirty-seven.  There  are  a  total  of  fifty  wagon- 
ettes used  in  this  service. 

The  amount  of  money  expended  for  modern  furniture  and 
school  libraries  in  1906  was  $97,000.  In  1904  the  amount  of 
money  raised  by  local  effort  for  building  and  equipping  public 
school-houses  was  $84,010.76 ;  in  1905  $334,039.61 ;  and  in  1906, 
$757,773.56,  making  the  total  raised  by  the  local  efforts,  $1,200,- 
000 ;  but  this  is  not  all ;  between  January  1  and  April,  1907,  the 
amount  of  money  raised  by  local  effort  and  placed  in  the  hands 
of  school  authorities  was  more  than  $500,000.  If  this  rate  should 
be  kept  up  it  would  mean  that  approximately  $1,000,000  an- 
nually would  be  added  to  the  cause  of  education  through  local 
effort. 

ARKANSAS. 

SUPT.    J.    J.   DOYNE. 

In  endeavoring  to  present  in  a  ten-minute  discussion  the  edu- 
cational progress  and  needs  of  our  State,  I  am  placed  much  in 
the  same  position  as  was  a  little  boy,  who,  on  a  certain  occasion, 
took  dinner  with  his  grandmother.  Being  questioned  as  to 
whether  or  not  he  had  enjoyed  his  visit,  his  reply  was:  ''Well, 
I  didn't  have  a  very  good  time;  you  see,  grandma  kept  telling 
me  to  eat  all  I  could  and  I  couldn't."  I  would  like  to  tell  you 
all  I  can,  but  I  can't— time  is  too  short. 

Increasing  interest  in  our  public  schools  and  a  manifest  de- 
termination to  better  their  condition  characterized  the  past  year 
with  us  as  one  of  unusual  progress  and  activity  in  educational 
affairs.  The  candidates  for  the  various  offices,  from  the  gover- 
nor down,  were  earnest  advocates  of  the  school  interests,  and 
no  such  wave  of  popular  sentiment  in  their  behalf  ever  before 
swept  over  the  State.  In  the  Democratic  State  Convention, 
held  last  June,  prominence  was  given  to  these  vital  matters, 
and  the  platform  adopted  made  special  reference  to  the  need 


BY   J.    J.    DOYXE 


87 


of  increased  school  revenues  and  better  facilities  for  the  train- 
ing of  teachers  for  the  public  schools.  As  a  result,  many  meas- 
ures, some  helpful,  others  harmful,  looking  to  the  general  wel- 
fare of  the  schools,  have  been  introduced  in  the  Legislature, 
and  radical  changes,  let  it  be  hoped,  for  the  best,  may  be  the 
outcome.  Keference  to  the  most  important  of  these  will  be 
made  later.  Much  credit  is  due  my  predecessor  in  office  for 
bringing  about  such  an  awakening. 

The  passage  of  a  law  in  1905,  permitting  special  school  districts 
to  borrow  money  for  building  purposes,  gave  an  impetus  to  this 
movement,  and  over  three  hundred  buildings,  ranging  in  value 
from  the  imposing  high  school  building  in  Little  Rock,  costing 
$150,000,  to  the  unpretentious  structures  in  the  smaller  towns, 
were  erected  in  1906.  In  each  case,  as  far  as  possible,  the  aim 
of  the  Department  of  Education  was  to  secure  the  erection  of 
modern  buildings,  comfortable,  convenient,  and  sanitary  in  their 
arrangement.  This  movement  led  to  the  introduction  of  a 
bill  before  our  Legislature,  now  in  session,  providing  for  the 
loan  of  the  permanent  school  fund,  amounting  to  over  one  and 
a  quarter  million  dollars,  under  certain  conditions,  to  school 
districts  for  building  purposes. 

While  the  length  of  the  school  term  for  the  past  twelve  months 
shows  no  advance  over  the  year  previous,  this  may  be  accounted 
for  in  large  measure  by  the  fact  that  in  many  districts  the  term 
was  shortened  in  order  that  a  greater  amount  might  be  spent 
for  improvement  of  buildings  and  grounds. 

A  marked  increase  was  made  in  the  attendance  at  summer  insti- 
tutes, the  reports  showing  an  enrollment  of  85  per  cent,  of  the 
teachers,  and  a  decided  increase  in  interest  in  the  work  being 
done.  As  an  outcome  of  these  institutes,  in  many  counties  there 
were  organized  monthly  associations,  and  the  enrollment  in  these 
meetings  has  been  steadily  improving. 

The  Arkansas  Teachers'  Reading  Circle,  organized  a  little 
over  one  year  ago,  now  carries  more  than  one  thousand  teachers 
on  its  roll,  most  of  them  doing  the  reading  required  in  a  regular 
four  years'  course.  The  advantages  derived  from  this  are  seen 
in  a  steadily  growing  interest  in  professional  reading,  and  the 


88  STATE  .SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

consequent  improvement  in  the  character  of  work  done  in  the 
school-room. 

In  the  election  held  last  September,  an  amendment  to  the 
State  Constitution  was  adopted,  increasing  the  general  tax  for 
school  purposes  from  two  to  three  mills,  and  extending  the  limit 
of  the  local  tax  from  five  to  seven  mills.  As  this  will  increase 
the  sch6ol  revenue  by  more  than  one-third,  it  can  readily  be  seen 
that  no  measure  of  greater  moment  has  ever  claimed  the  atten- 
tion of  those  interested  in  educational  progress  in  our  State. 

The  increasing  demand  for  teachers  of  a  higher  standard  of 
excellence  is  best  shown  by  the  fact  that  the  number  of  third 
grade  teachers  employed  in  1906  was  smaller  by  two  hundred 
and  fifty  than  for  the  year  previous.  The  salaries  of  the  teach- 
ers also  show  a  marked  advance,  and  the  question  of  merit  has 
begun  to  assume  prominence  over  that  of  price.  In  fact,  so  pro- 
nounced has  this  been,  that  it  has  been  impossible  to  find  accept- 
able teachers  to  supply  all  the  vacancies  reported  to  the  State 
Superintendent,  and  many  schools  were  forced  to  take  what 
they  could  get,  rather  than  what  they  felt  they  really  needed. 

Turning  to  the  other  phase  of  the  report,  what  are  the  needs 
of  our  State?  I  might  say  that  they  are  so  many,  one  might 
conclude,  were  they,  all  mentioned,  that  we  occupy  indeed  an 
unenviable  position.  I  daresay,  however,  that  conditions  in 
other  States  are  not  so  far  different  from  those  existing  in  ours, 
since  the  progress  in  matters  educational  has,  in  but  few  in- 
stances, kept  pace  with  that  in  other  activities. 

Better  county  supervision  is  an  imperative  need  with  us.  For 
years  the  office  of  county  examiner  has  been  maintained,  but 
this  has  been  very  unsatisfactory,  as  very  little,  if  any,  super- 
vision is  done  by  this  official,  his  work  being  confined  largely  to 
the  examination  of  teachers,  and  his  salary  dependent  on  the 
number  of  applicants  for  license.  A  bill  is  now  pending  in 
our  Legislature,  looking  to  the  establishment  of  the  office  of 
County  Superintendent,  with  fair  prospect  of  passage. 

Arkansas  is  one  of  the  few  States  in  the  Union  that  have  no 
State  Normal.  The  necessity  of  trained  teachers  to  meet  the 
present-day  requirement  in  our  schools  encourages  the  hope 
that  relief  will  be  afforded  by  an  act  under  consideration,  pro- 


BY   J.    J.    DOY^E  OU 

viding  for  a  State  Normal,  whose  province  it  shall  be  to  equip 
teachers  specially  for  our  rural  school  work. 

Two  years  ago  a  bill  providing  for  State  aid  to  high  schools 
was  passed  by  our  General  Assembly,  but  this  met  with  the 
executive  veto,  and  hence  never  became  a  law.  A  like  measure 
is  now  pending  before  that  body,  and  its  friends  hope  for  better 
things  this  time.  There  are  at  present  about  one  hundred  and 
seventy-five  special  school  districts  in  the  State,  in  which  high 
schools  are  maintained,  and  about  seventy  private  academies 
doing  high  school  work ;  but  it  seems  to  those  who  have  given  the 
matter  fair  consideration  that  good  county  high  schools,  well 
located  and  made  free  to  students  who  complete  the  State 
course  of  study  for  rural  schools,  will  reach  many  of  our  youth 
whose  education  must  otherwise  have  closed  with  the  work  of 
the  elementary  school.  More  than  this,  the  idea  is  gaming 
ground  that  the  Preparatory  Department  of  our  State  Univer- 
sity, now  enrolling  nearly  six  hundred  pupils,  should  be  abolish- 
ed, and  provision  made  nearer  home  for  caring  for  the  youth, 
who,  from  year  to  year,  at  much  expense,  attend  this  institution. 
It  might  be  added  that  the  growth  of  the  University  in  the  past 
four  years  has  been  highly  gratifying,  the  enrollment  in  all  de- 
partments now  being  more  than  fifteen  hundred. 

Three  bills  of  more  or  less  merit  have  also  been  introduced 
in  the  Legislature,  having  for  their  aim  the  establishment  of 
Agricultural  schools,  yet  not  overlooking  the  academic  side  of 
student  life.  The  tendency  of  education  away  from  rural  life 
has  made  itself  so  evident  that  the  friends  of  the  measure  above 
mentioned  look  for  relief  from  this  condition  in  some  sort  of 
legislation  that  will  send  the  boy  back  to  the  farm  no  longer 
endeavoring  to  carry  out  the  traditions  that  have  been  descended 
through  generations,  but  skilled  in  those  plans  and  methods  that 
have  transformed  the  old  homestead  into  an  inviting  haven, 
and  changed  many  a  fallow  land  into  fruitful  fields  and  reve- 
nue-producing assets. 

Other  matters  that  are  engrossing  the  attention  of  legislators 
and  the  friends  of  education  are  longer  school  terms,  compulsory 
education,  consolidation  of  school  districts,  State  uniformity 


90  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

of  text-books,  and  a  higher  standard  of  qualification  for  school 
directors. 

In  conclusion  I  have  this  to  say.  It  occurs  to  me  that  the 
greatest  need  among  all  the  States  is  a  livelier  public  sentiment 
in  favor  of  our  schools.  All  must  recognize  that  the  highest  degree 
of  civilization  is  possible  only  with  the  highest  standard  of  in- 
telligence. To  the  schools  we  must  look  for  the  training  that 
shall  encourage  men  to  strive  to  reach  this  standard.  The  trite 
adage,  ' '  As  is  the  teacher,  so  is  the  school, ' '  it  seems  to  me  needs 
some  modification.  As  are  the  demands  of  the  community,  in 
large  measure  will  the  school  be.  It  is  granted  that  the  teacher's 
influence  is,  and  of  right  should  be,  far-reaching  in  a  community. 
There  is  a  divided  responsibility,  however,  and  the  patron  must 
assume  his  proper  portion  of  the  same.  His  work  can  never  be 
done  by  the  teacher,  yet  it  must  be  done  if  the  school  is  to  reach 
its  highest  measure  of  efficiency.  Back  of  the  schools,  the  social 
life,  the  civil  life,  the  political  life,  stand  the  people.  Their  be- 
hests are  supreme,  and  the  tide  of  their  influence  may  sweep  all 
before  it.  Once  arouse  a  community  to  a  realization  of  its  pos- 
sibilities, to  a  consciousness  of  the  dangers  that  lurk  in  the  seduc- 
tive lurings  of  selfish  contentment ;  once  enlist  them,  full-hearted, 
in  the  struggle  for  betterment  of  conditions,  not  for  themselves 
alone,  but  for  the  youth  in  their  midst,  and  the  work  will  con- 
tinue. In  every  community  there  will  be  a  few  brave  souls,  who 
will  be  satisfied  with  nothing  less  than  success,  who  will  return 
from  the  contest  either  "with  their  shields  or  upon  them." 

VIRGINIA. 
SUPT.  J.  D.  EGGLESTON,  JR. 

In  my  report  to  the  Association  of  Superintendents  of  South- 
ern States  at  Lexington,  Ky.,  last  April,  I  enumerated  the  acts 
which  had  just  been  passed  by  the  General  Assembly  of  1906. 
These  acts  were : 

1.  An  act  appropriating  from  the  State  Treasury  an  addi- 
tional $200,000  a  year  for  the  pay  of  teachers  in  the  primary 


BY     J.     D.     EGGLESTON  91 

and  grammar  grades,  making  now  $400,000  a  year  so  contributed 
as  a  special  addition  to  the  regular  State  taxes  for  schools. 

2.  A  High  School  Act  appropriating  $50,000  annually  to  sup- 
plement local  funds  for  the  establishment  of  high  schools  that 
maintain  a  standard  fixed  by  the  State  Board  of  Education. 

3.  The  Williams  Building  Act,  which  enables  the  school  trus- 
tees to  borrow  from  the  Literary  Fund  money  with  which  to 
erect  school-houses  according  to  plans  and  specifications  to  be  ap- 
proved  by   the    Superintendent    of    Public    Instruction.      This 
money  is  loaned  at  4  per  cent,  and  is  to  be  repaid  in  ten  annual 
installments. 

The  appropriation  of  an  additional  $200,000  a  year  for  the  pay 
of  teachers  in  the  primary  and  grammar  grades  enables  many  of 
the  local  communities  to  raise  the  salaries  of  their  teachers.  Our 
statistics  are  too  incomplete  at  this  season  of  the  year  to  show 
the  full  effect  of  this  liberal  policy.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  this 
added  bounty  on  the  part  of  the  State  has  been  supplemented  by 
higher  local  taxes  in  many  of  the  divisions.,  and  the  average 
salary  for  1906-1907  in  Virginia  will  show  a  material  increase 
over  the  record  of  the  previous  year. 

The  most  important  school  law  passed  by  the  General  Assembly 
was  the  High  School  Act.  It  would  be  impossible  to  overestimate 
the  importance  of  this  act  and  to  tell  of  its  far-reaching  results. 
The  $50,000  per  year  given  the  State  Board  to  supplement  local 
funds  for  the  establishment  and  maintenance  of  high  schools 
taken  in  conjunction  with  the  Williams  Building  Act  shows  the 
following  results  in  one  hundred  and  ten  of  the  one  hundred  and 
eighteen  divisions  of  the  State : 

Buildings  whose  erection  or  improvement  were  induced  by 
the  High  School  Act,  52 ;  cost  of  same,  $138,482.40. 

Houses  erected  or  improved  in  part  by  loans  from  the  Liter- 
ary Fund,  58;  cost  of  same,  $137,027.72. 

Houses  erected  or  improved  by  other  loans  on  bond  issues, 
26;  amount  of  said  other  loans  or  bond  issues,  $196,330.00. 

The  High  School  fund  for  this  year  has  been  distributed 
among  one  hundred  and  sixty-eight  schools,  in  amounts  ranging 
from  $200  to  $400  each.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  the  counties  and 


92  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

cities  have  contributed  not  less  than  $200,000  additional  for 
pay  of  high  school  teachers.  Many  of  the  old  and  established 
high  schools  have  not  asked  for  State  aid. 

Viewing  the  situation  in  a  broader  way,  returns  from  the  said 
one  hundred  and  ten  divisions  show : 

Number  of  schoolhouses  completed  between  February  1,  1906, 
and  February  1,  1907,  236;  total  cost  of  same,  $402,898.60. 

Number  of  houses  enlarged  and  improved  during  same  inter- 
val, 70;  total  cost  of  same,  $93,568.42. 

Number  of  schoolhouses  now  building,  55 ;  total  cost  of  same, 
$263,995.00. 

I  am  of  opinion  that  the  new  buildings  and  substantial  im- 
provements completed  during  the  year  ending  February  1,  1907, 
aggregate  in  value  $550,000,  and  the  new  buildings  now  in  course 
of  erection  will  cost  $275,000,  or,  possibly,  $300,000. 

These  statistics  one  month  from  now  will  need  correction 
>nd  two  months  hence  some  of  them  will  be  out  of  date. 

We  have  between  twenty-five  and  thirty  transportation  wagons 
on  trial  in  various  parts  of  the  State.  A  fair  test  of  these 
wagons  has  aroused  a  sentiment  overwhelmingly  in  favor  of  con- 
tinuing and  steadily  pushing  the  idea  of  transporting  children 
as  well  as  that  of  consolidating  schools.  Many  consolidations 
have  been  effected,  however,  without  transportation  of  children. 

Concerning  the  remarkable  volunteer  work  now  being  done 
in  the  State  through  the  agencies  of  the  State  Teachers'  Associa- 
tion and  the  Citizens'  Improvement  Leagues  of  the  Co-operative 
Education  Association,  I  may  say  that  not  a  week  passes  without 
the  organization  of  one  or  more  Teachers'  Associations  or  School 
Improvement  Leagues.  More  than  half  of  the  teachers  of  the 
State  are  enrolled  in  the  various  local  Teachers'  Associations, 
and  they  are  very  active  in  keeping  alive  the  interest  through- 
out the  State.  A  still  more  interesting  situation,  probably,  is 
the  fact  that  the  teachers  at  a  time  when  their  schools  are  about 
to  close  are  more  active,  if  possible,  than  they  were  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  session.  It  seems  that  they  realize  that  the  pres- 
ent movement  in  Virginia  is  not  for  a  year  or  a  limited  period 
of  time,  but  permanent  in  every  r.espect.  The  increased  pro- 


BY     J.     D.     EGGLESTON  93 

fessional  zeal  of  the  teachers  is  one  of  the  most  encouraging  feat- 
ures of  the  present  educational  revival. 

The  plain  truth  is  that  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruc- 
tion, the  Secretary  of  the  State  Board  of  Education,  and  the 
five  School  Examiners  of  the  State  cannot  find  time  to  answer 
all  of  the  calls  made  upon  them  to  participate  in  school  exercises 
and  educational  meetings,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  they  are 
ably  assisted  by  many  public-spirited  citizens. 

Both  the  State  Teachers'  Association  and  the  Co-operative 
Education  Association  are  founded  upon  a  plan  that  makes  them 
representative  bodies.  Local  associations  send  delegates  to  the 
State  Conventions.  In  this  way  the  responsibility  for  their 
success  is  placed  directly  upon  the  shoulders  of  the  people  and 
the  teachers.  This  plan  serves  to  emphasize  the  importance  of 
local  work,  and  makes  the  annual  convention  something  more 
than  a  mere  succession  of  speeches. 

We  inaugurated  last  fall  an  Educational  Week,  at  which  time 
associations  representing  respectively  division  superintendents, 
boards  of  supervisors,  school  trustees,  teachers  and  the  local 
leagues  of  the  citizens  at  large,  assembled  in  large  numbers  in 
the  city  of  Richmond  in  a  meeting,  of  which  Dr.  E.  A.  Alderman 
has  said: 

"The  conception  was  unique,  and  the  plan  larger  and  more 
far-reaching  than  that  of  any  other  similar  meeting  of  which  I 
know. 

"It  was  the  most  impressive  educational  gathering  that  I 
have  ever  seen  in  any  Southern  State,  and  in  the  following  di- 
rections : 

"1.  The  size  of  the  meeting,  there  being  in  attendance  about 
sixteen  hundred. 

"2  The  different  educational  elements  represented,  from  the 
district  school  trustees  to  the  division  superintendent  and  col- 
lege president. 

' '  3.  The  splendid  spectacle  of  unity  in  the  Conference  and  the 
unity  of  principle  and  methods  evidenced  in  the  spirit  of  the 
meeting. 


94  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

"4.  The  fine  instinct  for  organization,  causing  each  depart- 
ment to  effect  a  permanent  organization. 

' '  5.     The  high  character  of  the  citizenship  interested. 

"The  total  impression  of  it  all  was  the  revelation  of  the  fact 
that  public  sentiment  in  Virginia  is  made  up  irrevocably  on  the 
question  of  education,  extending  from  the  primary  school  to  the 
university,  and  the  possibility  of  translating  that  public  senti- 
ment into  a  reality." 

This  report  would  not  be  complete  without  some  mention  of 
the  liberality  with  which  Virginia  maintains  her  institutions  of 
higher  learning.  To  her  eight  schools  of  collegiate  and  normal 
rank,  the  General  Assembly  appropriates  the  sum  of  $437,250.00 
annually. 

If  the  tone  of  this  paper  seems  altogether  optimistic,  I  can 
only  modify  the  general  impression  that  it  will  create  by  observ- 
ing that  although  we  have  many  serious  problems  to  solve,  it  is 
nevertheless  exceedingly  stimulating  to  be  at  1he  head  of  a  move- 
ment which  has  the  good-will  and  enthusiastic  support  of  the 
sovereign  people  of  this  State. 

NORTH  CAROLINA. 

SUPT.    J.    Y.    JOYNER. 

Since  my  last  report  to  this  Conference,  the  General  Assembly 
of  North  Carolina  has  met  in  bi-ennial  sossion.  One  of  the 
principle  issues  in  the  campaign  waged  for  the  election  of  the 
members  of  the  General  Assembly  was  that  of  educational  pro- 
gress and  expenditures.  The  issue  was  clear  cut ;  the  result  was 
a  victory  by  an  overwhelming  majority  for  the  advocates  of 
educational  progress  and  the  expenditures  necessary  for  such 
progress.  It  was  to  be  expected,  therefore,  that  the  General 
Assembly  of  1907  would  be  liberal  and  progressive  in  its  edu- 
cational legislation. 

The  following  is  a  brief  summary  of  the  important  legislation 
affecting  public  education,  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly 
of  North  Carolina  in  1907 : 


BY  J.    Y.    JOYNER  90 

I.      AN  ACT  TO  STIMULATE  HIGH  SCHOOL  INSTRUCTION  IN  THE  PUBLIC 
SCHOOLS  AND  TEACHER  TRAINING. 

Under  this  act  a  special  annual  appropriation  of  $50,000  was 
provided  for  the  establishment  of  public  high  schools  in  the 
various  counties,  and  for  the  maintenance  of  one  teacher  training 
school  at  some  point  in  Eastern  North  Carolina.  From  one 
to  four  public  high  schools  may  be  established  in  each  county, 
to  be  located  by  the  county  board  of  education,  operated  under 
rules  and  regulations  prescribed  by  the  State  Board  of  Education, 
the  course  of  study  and  requirements  for  admission  to  be  pre- 
scribed by  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction.  Each 
of  these  high  schools  must  have  at  least  three  teachers,  including 
the  high  school  teacher.  Teachers  in  such  high  schools  are  re- 
quired to  hold  high  school  teachers'  certificates  issued  by  the 
State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  and  a  Board  of  Ex- 
aminers. The  minimum  salary  of  such  high  school  teachers  is 
fixed  at  $40.00  per  school  month.  To  ,the  benefits  of  this  acf 
no  school  is  entitled  in  which  at  least  five  months'  instruction 
in  all  branches  of  study  required  to  be  taught  in  the  public 
schools  has  not  first  been  provided.  For  the  establishment  of 
any  high  school  under  this  act,  not  less  than  $250.00  must  be 
provided  by  local  taxation,  private  subscription,  county  appro- 
priation, or  otherwise,  and  then  the  same  amount  will  be  supplied 
out  of  the  State  appropriation.  Not  more  than  $500.00  is  avail- 
able from  the  State  appropriation  for  any  school,  and  not  more 
than  $500.00  from  the  county  appropriation. 

No  high  schools  can  be  established  under  the  act  in  towns  of 
more  than  twelve  hundred  inhabitants.  The  county  Board  of 
Education,  however,  is  authorized  to  contract  with  the  Board  of 
Trustees  or  the  committee  of  any  one  public  high  school  of  the 
county  provided  with  buildings,  teachers  and  high  school 
equipment,  to  permit  all  children  of  the  county  of  school  age 
and  of  sufficient  preparation,  and  all  public  school  teachers 
of  the  county  to  attend  such  school  free  of  tuition  in  each  high 
school  grade,  the  tuition  for  such  teachers  and  children  to  be 
paid  one-half  out  of  the  county  fund,  or  by  private  donation, 
and  one-half  out  of  the  State  appropriation,  the  rate  of  tuition 


96  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

for  each  to  be  fixed  in  the  contract.  For  this  purpose,  however, 
not  more  than  $500.00  is  available  from  the  county  board  or 
other  local  source  and  an  equal  amount  from  the  State  appro- 
priation. This  provision  permits  the  utilization  of  the  splendid 
high  school  equipment  and  teaching  force  of  a  number  of  the 
excellent  graded  schools  in  some  of  the  larger  towns  and  cities 
of  some  of  the  counties,  for  the  benefit  of  all  the  children  and 
all  the  public  school  teachers  of  those  counties.  Under  this 
act,  many  of  the  local  tax  schools  with  good  houses  and  two  or 
more  teachers  can  also  be  utilized  for  giving  higher  instruction 
and  preparation  for  college,  and  for  life,  to  all  the  children 
in  the  district,  and  for  extending  such  instruction,  also,  to  all 
the  children  of  the  township  and  the  adjoining  townships. 

This  high  school  act  is  a  long  step  in  the  direction  of  placing 
high  school  instruction  within  the  reach  of  country  boys  and 
girls  and  of  supplying  the  missing  link  between  the  rural  public 
schools  and  the  colleges.  The  influence  of  these  public  high 
schools  in  the  rural  districts  will  be  potent  in  arousing  among 
the  country  boys  and  girls  an  ambition  for  more  knowledge 
and  better  training,  in  increasing  the  general  intelligence  in  the 
rural  communities,  in  improving  the  rank  and  file  of  the  public 
school  teachers,  in  inspiring  among  all  classes  of  people  more 
respect  for  the  whole  public  school  system.  Let  us  hope  that 
we  are  already  entering  the  dawn  of  the  day  when  North  Caro- 
lina, like  many  other  States,  shall  have  a  public  school  system 
connected  and  complete  from  the  primary  school  to  the  Uni- 
versity. 

This  appropriation  of  $50,000,  annually,  is  the  first  increase 
in  State  appropriation  for  the  lower  public  schools  since  1901. 
It  is  wisely  made  in  such  a  way  as  to  require  and  stimulate 
self-help.  For  every  dollar  given  by  the  State  the  community 
or  county  must  provide  another  dollar. 

The  same  act  provides  for  the  establishment  of  the  East 
Carolina  Teachers'  Training  School;  $5,000  of  the  high  school 
appropriation  is  directed  to  be  used  annually  for  the  support  and 
maintenance  of  a  teachers'  training  school  at  some  point  East 
of  Raleigh.  The  school  is  to  be  located  by  the  State  Board 


BY  J.  Y.  JOYNER  Vt 

of  Education,  in  or  near  that  town  offering  the  largest  financial 
•aid,  due  regard  being  paid,  however,  to  desirability  and  suitability 
of  the  location.  A  special  appropriation  of  $15,000  is  made  for 
buildings  and  equipment  upon  condition  that  the  town  or  com- 
munity in  which  said  school  is  located  shall  contribute,  in  addi- 
tion to  a  site,  not  less  than  $25,000  for  the  same  purpose.  The 
purpose  of  the  school  is  to  give  young  white  men  and  women  such 
education  and  training  as  shall  fit  and  qualify  them  for  teach- 
ing in  the  public  schools  of  North  Carolina.  The  course  of 
study  is  limited  to  preparation  for  unconditional  entrance  into 
the  freshman  class  of  the  University  of  North  Carolina.  The 
school  is  to  be  under  the  management  of  a  Board  of  Trustees 
composed  of  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction 
as  chairman  ex  officio,  two  members  from  the  first,  two  from  the 
second,  two  from  the  third,  two  from  the  fourth  and  one  from 
the  sixth  congressional  districts.  The  proposed  school  and  the  two 
teacher  training  schools  in  Western  North  Carolina  can  be  made 
to  supplement  most  profitably  the  work  of  the  public  high  schools 
in  the  counties,  and  the  work  of  the  State  Normal  and  Industrial 
College  and  the  University  in  the  preparation  of  public  school 
teachers. 

II.      THE  COMPULSORY  ATTENDANCE  ACT. 

This  is  a  sort  of  local  option  compulsory  attendance  law. 
The  County  Board  of  Education  of  any  county,  may,  in  its  dis- 
cretion, upon  the  petition  of  a  majority  of  the  qualified  voters  jf 
any  township  or  school  district,  order  and  hold  an  election,  sub- 
mitting to  the  qualified  voters  of  such  township  or  district  the 
question  of  compulsory  attendance.  If  a  majority  of  the  votes 
in  such  district  or  township  is  cast  for  compulsory  attendance, 
the  County  Board  of  Education  must  order  compulsory  attend- 
ance upon  the  school  or  schools  of  the  township  or  district  named 
in  the  petition.  All  children  over  eight  and  under  fourteen 
years  of  age  are  required  to  attend  the  public  schools  of  the 
district  in  which  they  reside  for  sixteen  weeks  in  each  school 
year,  unless  they  shall  have  received  elsewhere  during  the  year 
regular  instruction  for  sixteen  weeks  in  the  public  school  branch- 
es of  study.  Children  over  twelve  years  of  age  are  not  subject 


98  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

to  the  requirements  of  this  act  while  lawfully  employed  at  labor 
at  home  or  elsewhere.  Parents  or  guardians  violating  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act  requiring  the  attendance  of  children  under 
their  control  are  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor  ^ind  subject  to  a  fine 
of  not  less  than  $5.00  nor  more  than  $25.00.  The  only  excuses 
for  non-attendance  are  mental  or  physical  incapacity  of  the 
child  and  inability  on  the  part  of  the  parent  or  guardian  to  pro- 
vide the  child  with  suitable  clothing  for  attending  school.  Per- 
sons employing  children  under  twelve  years  of  age,  or  author- 
izing or  permitting  the  regular  employment  of  such  children 
upon  premises  under  their  control,  during  school  hours  while 
the  school  such  child  should  attend  is  in  session,  are  guilty  of 
a  misdemeanor.  The  report,  under  oath,  of  the  teacher  or  prin- 
cipal of  any  school  subject  to  compulsory  attendance,  showing 
the  names  of  the  children  between  the  ages  of  eight  and  fourteen 
years  attending  such  school,  is  prima  facie  evidence  that  the 
children  not  enumerated  therein  did  not  attend  school.  The 
county  superintendent  is  required  to  furnish  to  the  constable 
or  other  lawful  officer  of  the  county  a  list  of  the  children  not 
attending  school  as  required  by  law,  and  it  is  the  duty  of  such 
officer,  upon  affidavit  of  some  reputable  person  that  any  person 
has  violated  the  provisions  of  this  law,  to  cause  the  offending 
person  to  be  prosecuted  before  some  justice  of  the  peace  of  the 
township. 

This  is  a  very  mild  and  conservative  compulsory  attendance 
law,  and  can  do  no  violence  to  the  spirit  and  prejudices  of  our 
people.  Any  sort  of  compulsory  attendance  law,  however,  in 
North  Carolina  is  a  distinct  victory  for  education,  and  indicates 
a  remarkable  and  almost  revolutionary  growth  in  public  senti- 
ment as  to  the  value  and  necessity  of  education,  and  as  to  the 
educational  rights  of  the  child  and  the  correlative  rights  of  the 
tax-payer.  In  addition  to  this  general  compulsory  attendance 
law,  a  number  of  special  compulsory  attendance  acts  for  towns 
and  particular  communities  were  passed.  Two  counties  and 
several  towns  of  the  State  already  had  compulsory  attendance 
laws.  Under  the  compulsory  attendance  act,  communities  in 
which  the  sentiment  and  environment  are  favorable  to  putting 


BY  J.  Y.  JUYXER  99 

the  law  into  successful  operation  will  adopt  it  and  begin  to 
demonstrate  objectively  to  the  rest  of  the  State  its  value  and 
practicability. 

III.      IMPORTANT   AMENDMENTS    TO    THE    PUBLIC    SCHOOL   LAW. 

There  were  only  two  important  amendments  to  the  public 
school  law.  The  section  of  the  law  providing  for  special  tax 
school  districts  was  so  amended  as  to  allow  contiguous  territory 
to  be  added  to  any  special  tax  district  upon  written  request 
of  a  majority  of  the  committee  of  the  special  tax  district,  ap- 
proved by  the  County  Board  of  Education,  by  a  vote  of  a  majori- 
ty of  the  qualified  voters  in  the  new  teritory  to  levy  upon  them- 
selves the  same  tax  as  that  levied  by  the  special  tax  district. 

By  an  amendment  to  the  section  regulating  teachers'  certifi- 
cates and  salaries,  provision  was  made  for  the  issuance  of  five- 
year  certificates,  valid  in  any  county  of  the  State  to  teachers 
holding  a  first  grade  county  certificate  and  having  not  less  than 
one  year's  successful  experience  in  teaching.  Provision  was  also 
made  for  the  issuance  of  high  school  certificates.  The  exam- 
inations for  both  these  sorts  of  certificates  and  the  issuance  of 
them  are  under  the  direction  of  the  Board  of  Examiners  consist- 
ing of  not  less  than  three  nor  more  than  five  practical  teachers, 
of  which  the  State  Superintendent  is  chairman  ex  officio.  The 
mimimum  salary  of  $35.00  is  fixed  for  .he  holder  of  &  five-year 
certificate  and  of  $40.00  for  the  holder  of  a  high  school  certifi- 
cate. The  amendment  is  a  decided  step  in  the  direction  of  the 
elevation  of  the  standard  of  teaching,  of  professional  improve- 
ment and  of  increase  in  teachers'  salaries. 

IV.      INCREASE    IN   APPROPRIATIONS   FOR    THE   HIGHER  INSTITUTIONS 

OF  LEARNING. 

The  General  Assembly  of  1907  was  perhaps  the  most  liberal 
General  Assembly  that  has  ever  met  in  the  State,  in  its  appro- 
priations for  the  State  educational  institutions.  It  increased 
the  appropriations  of  the  University,  the  State  Normal  and  In- 
dustrial College,  the  A.  &  M.  College,  the  Appalachian  Training 
School,  the  Cullowhee  Normal  and  Training  School.  It  also 
increased  the  appropriations  for  the  School  for  the  Deaf  at 


100  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

Morganton,  the  School  for  the  Deaf  and  Blind  at  Raleigh.  It 
also  increased  the  appropriations  for  the  Colored  Normal  Schools 
and  for  the  A.  &  M.  College  for  the  Colored  Race.  The  total 
increase  in  the  annual  appropriations  for  the  maintenance  and 
support  of  educational  institutions  is  $136,750.  The  total  in- 
crease in  the  appropriations  for  buildings  and  improvement  for 
these  institutions  is  $36,550. 

V.      SPECIAL  ACTS  ESTABLISHING  GRADED  SCHOOLS. 

In  addition  to  the  general  legislation  affecting  education, 
the  General  Assembly  passed  many  special  acts  establishing 
graded  schools  and  providing  for  elections  for  special  taxation 
for  their  support. 

During  the  year,  the  educational  progress  in  building  ana 
equipping  public  school  houses,  in  improving  public  school 
grounds,  in  establishing  rural  libraries,  in  establishing  local 
tax  districts  and  increasing  school  funds  by  local  taxation,  in 
improving  and  strengthening  county  supervision,  in  gradation 
and  systematizatiOn  of  the  work  of  the  rural  schools,  in  carry- 
ing on  a  campaign  for  education  by  bulletins,  through  the  press 
and  by  public  addresses,  in  more  effective  organization  of  teach- 
ers, superintendents,  and  other  educational  forces,  in  the  en- 
largement of  the  work  of  the  women  for  the  betterment  of  the 
public  school  houses,  in  improvement  in  the  methods  of  managing 
the  school  funds  and  keeping  the  school  records,  and  in  all  lines 
of  educational  work  heretofore  reported  has  been  continuous 
and  satisfactory. 

During  the  year,  433  new  school  houses,  44  more  than  during 
the  preceding  year,  have  been  built.  The  value  of  the  school 
property  has  been  increased  $542,136.00,  of  which  $245,609.00 
was  the  increase  in  the  value  of  rural  school  property.  The 
increase  in  the  school  fund  was  $321,949.11.  The  funds  raised 
by  local  taxation  in  the  rural  districts  were  increased  92  per 
cent.,  in  the  city  districts  26  per  cent.,  and  for  the  State  33 
per  cent.  During  the  year,  86  new  local  tax  districts  have  been 
established,  making  the  total  number  of  such  districts  in  the 
State  to  date,  443;  $48,159.78  was  contributed  by  private  sub- 
scription for  increasing  the  rural  school  term,  for  rural  school 


BY  J.   Y.   JOYNER  101 

buildings,  equipment  and  the  like;  $594,003.37  was  expended 
for  school  buildings  and  supplies,  $282,994.88  in  the  rural  dis- 
tricts and  $311,008.49  in  the  cities.  This  was  an  increase  of 
$9,150.15  in  the  rural  districts  and  $205,744.67  in  the  cities 
over  the  expenditures  for  the  same  purpose  the  preceding  year. 

There  has  been  an  encouraging  increase  in  the  average  salary 
of  the  county  superintendent,  and  a  small  increase  in  the  salaries 
of  teachers.  The  average  annual  salary  of  the  county  super- 
intendent is  now  $589.55,  an  increase  of  $37.22.  There  has 
been  a  satisfactory  increase  in  enrollment  and  attendance. 

The  Loan  Fund  is  still  proving  one  of  the  most  helpful 
agencies  in  building  and  improving  public  school  houses.  Dur- 
ing the  year,  $64,753.00  has  been  lent  for  building  and  improv- 
ing 69  houses  valued  at  $146,004.00.  This  fund  now  amounts 
to  $317,113.93,  and  is  rapidly  increasing  through  the  sales  of 
swamp  lands  and  through  the  payment  of  the  annual  interest 
of  4  per  cent,  on  all  loans, 

The  rural  libraries  continue  to  increase  in  number  and  grow 
in  popularity.  During  the  year,  276  new  libraries  have  been 
established  containing  21,184  volumes,  valued  at  $8,280.00;  75 
supplementary  libraries  have  been  established,  valued  at  $1,- 
125,00,  adding  to  the  libraries  already  established  about  2,700 
volumes.  The  total  number  of  rural  libraries  in  the  State  to 
date  is  1,632,  costing  $53,383.85,  containing  147,208  volumes 
accessible  to  144,986  children. 

One  of  the  most  helpful  agencies  in  securing  this  educational 
progress  has  been  the  ceaseless  campaign  in  which  many  strong 
speakers,  including  public  officials,  representative  business  men, 
representative  teachers  and  other  professional  men,  have  gladly 
taken  part,  without  other  compensation  than  the  payment  of  ex- 
penses. We  are  deeply  grateful  to  the  Southern  Education 
Board  for  the  funds  necessary  to  carry  on  this  almost  indispens- 
able campaign. 


At  the   conclusion   of   the    reports   from   the   several'  States 
through  their  respective  Superintendents,  the  Chairman  intro- 


102  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

duced  the  Hon.  Joseph  M.  Terrell,  Governor  of  the  State  of 
Georgia,  who  spoke  as  follows: 

GOVERNOR  TERRELL. 

Mr.  Chairman,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

I  am  glad  to  be  with  you  this  morning  at  this  most  interest- 
ing conference,  and  I  am  very  much  gratified  at  the  splendid  re- 
ports of  the  educational  progress  of  the  South.  I  am  delighted 
that  Georgia's  oldest  daughter,  Alabama,  has  waked  up  at  last, 
and  that  her  other  daughter,  Mississippi,  has  so  enthusiastic  a 
leader.  It  is  also  gratifying  to  see  the  Carolinas  and  other 
Southern  States  appropriating  more  liberally  to  the  cause  of 
education. 

Georgia's  appropriation  last  summer  of  $100,000  for  an  agri- 
cultural building  at  the  State  University,  and  about  $200,000 
for  the  enlargement  of  her  other  educational  institutions;  her 
appropriation  of  a  million  dollars  annually  from  direct 
taxation  for  common  schools;  and  the  law  providing  for  the 
establishment  of  eleven  Industrial  and  Agricultural  Schools  in 
the  State  produced  a  good  effect  in  her  sister  States.  We  wel- 
come rivalry  in  so  just  a  cause.  You  have  done  well  in  your  win- 
ter sessions  of  the  Legislature.  Next  summer  when  our  Legis- 
lature convenes,  Georgia  will  no  doubt  set  you  <t  new  pattern. 

While  Georgia  is  justly  called  the  Empire  State  of  the  South 
we  recognize  the  fact  that  she  can  only  hold  that  proud  title 
by  bringing  each  generation  to  higher  efficiency.  We  propose 
to  do  this,  and  we  invite  all  other  States  to  come  along  with  us. 
Our  State  Superintendent  has  not  overdrawn  the  picture.  We 
are  in  the  midst  of  the  greatest  educational  revival  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  State.  It  affects  not  merely  a  few  phases  of  our 
complex  life,  but  extends  to  all  forms  of  education,  elementary, 
secondary  and  university;  to  literary,  scientific  and  technical 
training;  to  professional  men  and  women;  to  men  behind  the 
plow  or  at  the  side  of  the  machine ;  to  the  girls  in  the  home  and 
in  the  schoolroom  or  at  the  desk.  We  believe  in  efficient  train- 
ing for  the  multitudinous  duties  of  this  twentieth  century  life. 

Perhaps  I  can  best  illustrate,  the  present  attitude  of  Georgia 


BY  J.  Y.   JOY^TEB  103 

to  education  by  describing  to  you  the  manner  in  which  the  eleven 
Industrial  and  Agricultural  Schools  have  been  established.    The 
General  Assembly  at  its  session  last  summer  passed  an  act  author- 
izing the  Governor  to  receive  from  any  county  or  from  the  citi- 
zen thereof,  a  donation  of  a  tract  of  land  in-  such  county,  not 
less  than  two  hundred  acres,  on  which  to  locate  a  school  for  the 
district  in  which  the  county  was  situated,  together  with  any 
additional  donation  in  the  way  of  buildings  or  money;  and  if 
there  were  two  or  more  offers  of  such  donation  in  the  congres- 
sional district,  the  Governor,  with  the  aid  of  the  Trustees,  should 
determine  which  donation  to  accept,  and  should  locate  the  school 
after  considering  the  title  and  value  of  the  property  offered, 
the  centralness  of  location  and  the  accessibility  and  suitability 
for  the  purposes  intended.     The  schools,  when  located,  the  law 
provides,  shall  be  maintained  from  the  net  fees  arising  from  the 
inspection  of  oils  and  fertilizers.     These  fees  will  amount  to  six 
or  seven  thousand  dollars  for  each  school.     The  Board  of  Trus- 
tees is  composed  of  one  from  each  county  in  the  congressional 
district  and  they  have  the  management  and  control  of  the  school, 
though  the  law  provides  that  the  General  Board  of  Trustees 
of  the  University  shall  exercise  such  supervision  as  in  their 
judgment   is  deemed  necessary  to   secure  unity  of  plan   and 
efficiency  in  the  schools.     This  general  supervision  will  no  doubt 
be  construed  as  advisory,  and  no  danger  of  conflict  between  the 
two  boards  is  apprehended.     In  determining  the  question  of  lo- 
cation of  these  schools  I  issued  a  call  for  a  meeting  of  the  board 
in  the  particular  district  and  gave  notice  to  the  public  through 
the  various  county  papers  that  the  board  would  meet  at  a  given 
time  and  place  for  the  purpose  of  considering  propositions  for 
the  location  of  the  school  for  that  congressional  district.     At 
each  of  these  meetings  we  had  from  two  to  five  bids,  and  the 
aggregate  of  the  accepted  bids  for  the  eleven  districts  is  over 
$800,000  in  cash  and  lands. 

The  largest  amount  of  these  donations  came  from  individuals. 
In  two  or  three  instances  cities  and  towns  made  considerable 
contributions,  but  most  of  the  money  and  land  came  as  a  free 
will  offering  from  the  pockets  of  the  citizens  of  the  county  in 
which  the  school  was  located.  Were  we  to  aggregate  all  of 


104  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

the  contributions  offered,  including  those  accepted,  we  should 
have  a  sum  of  over  three  million  dollars  which  the  citizens  of 
Georgia  voluntarily  offered  to  donate  to  the  cause  of  education. 
In  some  instances  where  bids  were  accepted  there  were  a  few 
large  donations  ranging  from  one  to  five  thousand  dollars,  but 
in  a  large  majority  of  the  cases  the  subscriptions  were  from  $25 
to  $100.  In  one  case  where  an  offer  of  $30,000  and  300  acres  of 
land  wn«  made  and  accepted  by  the  Board  of  (Trustees  there  were 
six  hundred  and  fifty  subscribers.  In  another  case  where  there 
was  $25,000  and  300  acres  of  land  offered  there  were  three  hun- 
dred an-1  eighty-five  subscribers  and,  notwithstanding  that  these 
schools  are  solely  for  white  children,  ten  of  these  subscribers  were 
negroes,  giving  sums  from  $10  to  $50  each.  In  this  last  case 
there  was  something  over  $25,000  subscribed,  but  a  few  were 
thought  to  be  of  little  value  and  were  not  counted.  To  the  sur- 
prise of  every  one,  when  collections  were  made  it  was  found  that 
the  sum  of  $25,600  had  been  paid  in.  The  people  are  enthu- 
siastic over  these  schools,  and  their  enthusiasm  is  backed  up  with 
their  pocket-books.  It  is  enthusiasm,  too',  that  does  not  end  with 
the  location  of  the  schools,  as  I  on  yesterday  received  information 
that  $15,000  additional  to  the  sum  promised  had  been  raised  and 
paid  over  to  the  Treasurer  of  the  Board  by  a  county  where  one 
of  the  schools  was  located.  I  attribute  this  enthusiasm  to  the 
fact  that  the  schools  are  just  what  the  farmers  of  Georgia  feel 
that  they  need,  and  I  am  sure  that  they  will  continue  to  receive 
their  warmest  support  and  encouragement. 

As  to  the  scope  of  these  schools,  I  can  best  give  you  my  idea 
by  stating  the  substance  of  a  resolution  which  I  introduced  at 
the  last  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  State  University. 
and  which  was  unanimously  adopted  by  that  body. 

(In  lieu  of  a  synopsis  of  the  statement  made  by  Governor  Ter- 
rell a  copy  of  the  resolution  referred  to  by  him  is  here  inserted. ) 

RESOLUTIONS  OFFERED  BY  GOV.  JOSEPH  M.  TERRELL. 

Whereas  the  act  providing  for  the  establishment  and  mainte- 
nance of  an  Industrial  and  Agricultural  School  in  each  Congress- 
ional District  declares  in  section  1  that  "The  general  Board  of 
Trustees  of  the  University  shall  exercise  such  supervision  as  in 


BY  J.   Y.    JOYXEK  105 

their  judgment  may  be  necessary  to  secure  unity  of  plan  and 
efficiency  in  said  schools;" 

And  whereas  section  6  of  said  act  prescribes  "that  the  course 
of  study  in  said  schools  shall  be  confined  to  the  elementary 
branches  of  an  English  education,  and  practical  treatises  and  lec- 
tures on  agriculture  in  all  its  branches,  and  the  mechanic  arts 
and  such  other  studies  as  will  enable  students  completing  the 
course  TO  enter  the  Freshman  class  of  the  State  College  of  Agri- 
culture on  certificate  of  the  principal;" 

And  whereas  the  paramount  object  of  these  schools  being  the 
education  of  the  pupils,  both  theoretically  and  practically,  in 
the  science  of  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts,  and  preparing 
them  for  citizenship,  a  curriculum  should  be  prescribed  that  will 
include  only  those  studies  which  are  in  their  nature  and  ten- 
dency contributory  to  that  end ;  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  First.  That  the  minimum  age  for  entrance  into  said 
schools  shall  be  fixed  at  fourteen  years  for  males  and  thirteen 
years  for  females,  and  that  there  be  an  equitable  division  of  the 
dormitory  space  among  the  counties  of  the  district  as  provided 
in  section  9  of  the  act,  and  should  all  the  space  allotted  a  county 
be  not  applied  for  at  the  beginning  of  a  scholastic  year,  such 
unused  space  may  be  allotted  for  such  year  to  any  other  county. 

Second.  That  the  course  of  study  be  limited  to  four  years' 
work,  including  at  least  one  year  of  common  school  or  elementary 
studies,  and  that  the  scholastic  year  be  forty  weeks;  the  school 
day  to  be  so  arranged  as  to  insure  at  least  three  hours  a  day  of 
class-room  work  in  Agriculture  and  Related  Sciences,  English. 
Mathematics  and  History,  and  at  least  three  hours  a  day  on  the 
farm  or  in  the  laboratory  or  shop,  the  hours  in  actual  farm  work 
to  be  regulated  by  the  exigencies  of  the  farm;  the  programme 
being  such  as  to  provide  for  alternation  of  the  work  and  study 
among  the  classes  morning  and  afternoon,  thereby  securing  con- 
tinuous operation  of  the  farm  and  shops;  the  female  students  to 
be  provided  with  a  practical  and  comprehensive  course  in  do- 
mestic science,  sewing,  household  economics  and  kindred  studies. 

Third.  That  the  principals  of  said  schools  shall  provide  from 
time  to  time  for  such  lectures  on  agriculture  and  related  sub- 


106  STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS'  MEETING 

jects  as  the  funds  of  the  school  will  permit,  and  shall  also  pro- 
vide for  short  courses  for  adult  farmers,  in  so  far  as  the  same 
may  not  conflict  with  other  work  of  the  schools. 

Fourth.  That  for  satisfactory  work  done  on  the  farm  and  in 
the  shops  students  may  be  allowed  fair  compensation  by  the  prin- 
cipal, per  hour,  or  per  piece,  to  be  credited  on  the  dormitory  ex- 
penses of  the  students.  In  addition  thereto  students  shall  re- 
ceive their  pro  rata  of  the  net  profits  arising  from  the  farm  as 
provider;  in  section  5,  but  the  same  t'hall  first  be  credited  to  their 
dormitory  and  other  school  expenses. 

Fifth.  That  one-fourth  of  the  students,  or  such  number  as  the 
principal  may  determine  as  necessary  to  continue  the  operation 
of  the  farm  and  shop,  be  required  to  remain  on  the  farm  during 
vacation,  and  for  work  required  during  this  time  the  students 
be  given  fair  compensation.  Students  of  the  third  and  fourth 
year  may  be  given  acre  plots  for  individual  cultivation,  or  small 
farms  for  supervision,  the  profits  to  be  their  own,  the  same, 
however  first  to  be  applied  to  payment  of  their  dormitory  or 
other  expenses. 

Sixth.  That  the  State  Farmers'  Institutes  Director  shall  ar- 
range farmers'  institutes  at  these  schools  and  secure  the  help  of 
the  faculties  thereof  in  conducting  Institutes  in  other  counties; 
that  th<i  Professor  of  Forestry  in  the  State  University  be  author- 
ized and  directed  to  aid  the  several  schools  in  caring  for  forests 
on  the  farms;  that  the  Professor  of  Secondary  Education  be  re- 
quired to  give  such  aid  as  is  consistent  with  his  other  duties, 
and  that  the  other  professors  of  the  State  Agricultural  College 
be  authorized  to  co-operate  in  the  work  of  these  schools  and  that 
of  their  respective  departments. 

Seventh.  That  the  principal  of  each  school  shp.ll  make  an  an- 
nual report  to  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  his  district,  showing  at- 
tendance, programme  of  hours,  income  and  expenditures,  and 
shall  furnish  a  copy  for  publication  in  the  annual  bulletin  of  the 
State  Agricultural  College. 

The  people  of  Georgia  are  thoroughly  aroused  along  all  edu- 
cational lines.  Our  State  University  furnishes  the  capstone  of 
our  educational  system.  This  great  institution  has  a  number  of 


BY  J.   Y.   JOY^ER  107 

branches,  which  are  a  great  blessing  to  our  people.  The  North 
Georgia  Agricultural  and  Mechanical  College  at  Dahlonega  has 
accomplished  much  for  the  mountain  districts  of  the  State,  and 
is  now  registering  pupils  from  every  section;  the  State  Normal 
School  at  Athens  is  giving  to  our  common  school  system  of  the 
State  many  able  and  well  trained  teachers;  the  Girls'  Normal 
and  Industrial  College  at  Milledgeville,  one  of  Georgia's  great- 
est and  most  popular  institutions,  is  annually  training  hundreds 
of  Georgia  girls  and  equipping  them  for  life's  duties;  the  School 
of  Technology  is  contributing  its  full  share  to  the  industrial  up- 
building and  development  of  the  State;  and  the  School  for  Col- 
ored Youths  at  Savannah  is  proving  a  great  factor  in  instilling 
amongst  the  colored  people  a  greater  desire  for  industrial  train- 
ing. 

During  the  last  four  years,  in  addition  to  my  official  duties 
connected  with  these  various  institutions,  it  has  been  a  real  pleas- 
ure for  me  to  give  to  them  and  to  the  other  educational  institu- 
tions in  the  State,  all  of  my  spare  time.  In  doing  this  I  have 
become  impressed  with  the  idea  that  none  of  our  teachers  are 
paid  salaries  commensurate  with  their  duties.  From  the  chan- 
cellor and  professors  of  the  University  down  to  the  common 
school  teachers  the  salaries  are  inadequate,  and  my  information 
is  to  the  effect  that  the  same  is  true  in  all  other  Southern  States. 
There  is  hardly  a  shoe  or  tobacco  drummer  whose  compensation 
does  not  exceed  the  salaries  of  the  University  or  College  profes- 
sors. This  should  be  corrected,  and  I  would  gladly  render  this 
Conference  all  the  assistance  within  my  power  looking  to  the 
betterment  of  these  salaries.  I  suggest  that  you  make  a  campaign 
alcng  this  line,  and  I  here  and  now  authorize  you  to  enlist  me 
for  sueh  a  campaign.  Let  us  pay  such  salaries  as  will  attract 
and  hold  the  ablest  talent  to  the  school  room.  This  is  the  line 
of  progress  along  which  I  trust  all  may  be  able  to  report  much 
progress  at  your  next  annual  Conference. 

I  thank  you,  my  friends,  for  the  interest  that  you  have  mani- 
fested in  these  scattering  remarks,  and  I  can  but  regret  that  I 
did  not  come  prepared  to  make  you  a  better  talk. 


WEDNESDAY  AFTERNOON,  APRIL  10th 

WOMEN'S  MEETING. 
MRS.  J.  LINDSAY  PATTERSON  IN  THE  CHAIR. 

The  Women's  Meeting  of  the  Conference  was  held  in  the 
Auditorium  of  the  Carolina  Hotel  on  Wednesday  afternoon,  and 
was  called  to  order  at  3  o'clock  by  Mrs.  J.  Lindsay  Patterson,  of 
Wmston-Salem,  N.  C.,  President  of  the  Women's  Interstate 
Association  for  the  Betterment  of  Public  Schools.  Mrs.  Patter- 
son gave  a  brief  sketch  of  the  origin  and  work  of  this  Associa- 
tion and  was  followed  by  representatives  of  the  several  States 
who  presented  reports  of  the  educational  efforts  of  the  women  in 
their  respective  fields.  Each  State  was  given  fifteen  minutes 
with  five  minutes  following  for  open  discussion.  The  reports 
and  addresses  were  as  follows : 

MRS.  PATTERSON. 

We  are  most  happy  to-day  to  welcome  not  only  the  members 
of  the  Interstate  Association  for  the  Betterment  of  Public 
Schools,  but  the  friends  and  strangers  in  our  midst,  and  I  hope 
that  the  hours  we  spend  together  may  be  both  inspiring  and 
helpful. 

As  you  know,  or  should  know,  every  good  thing  has  its  origin 
in  North  Carolina.  So  Dr.  Mclver,  that  prophet  who  was  an. 
honor  to  his  country  and  was  honored  by  it  until  his  lamented 
death,  was  only  following  in  the  footsteps  of  the  fathers,  when, 
in  1902,  he  organized,  at  the  State  Normal  College,  in  Greens- 
boro, the  first  Woman's  Association  for  the  Betterment  of  Pub- 
lic Schools. 

The  Secretary's  report  reads  like  a  romance,  so  quickly  was 
the  importance  of  the  movement  recognized.  Within  a  year  the 
Association,  which  at  first  included  only  the  school  girls  of  one 
institution,  counted  on  its  rolls  hundreds  of  women  from  all 
over  the  State.  Men  and  women  in  all  the  professions  and  in 
all  wa^l-s  of  life  expressed  their  interest  by  their  words  and 


MRS.     PATTEKSOX  109 

work  and  by  their  attendance  at  the  second  annual  meeting. 
Within  three  years  the  Betterment  Association  had  become  one 
of  the  permanent  educational  forces  of  the  State.  In  July,  1905. 
Mr.  P.  P.  Claxton  invited  women  interested  in  school  improve- 
ment to  meet  at  the  Summer  School  of  the  South,  then  in  session 
at  Knoxville,  Tennessee.  The  meeting  lasted  two  days,  and  edu- 
cational conditions  in  each  Southern  State  were  discussed,  as 
well  as  ways  and  means  by  which  ihey  could  be  improved.  It 
was  decided  that  the  best  solution  of  the  problem  was  to  form 
an  interstate  Association,  with  a  president  and  general  office  re, 
whose  duty  it  should  be  to  acquaint  themselves  with  what  had 
been  done  in  all  the  States,  and  bind  it  together  into  one  harmo- 
nious, helpful  whole.  Further,  it  was  decided  to  appoint  State 
officers  who  should  have  charge  of  the  work  in  their  own  States, 
and  should  as  far  as  practicable,  organize  it  along  the  lines 
already  laid  down  in  North  Carolina,  where  the  work  had  been 
systematic,  simple  and  helpful. 

Of  ceurse  I  am  aware  that  it  would  be  more  seemly  for  me 
to  throw  bouquets  at  my  neighbor  States  than  at  my  home  State, 
but  if  you  will  remember  that  we  are  sandwiched  between  thrice 
modest  Virginia  and  timid,  self -effacing-  South  Carolina,  and  that 
consequently  it  is  a  life-and-death  struggle  with  Tarheels  ever 
to  get  their  heads  above  water  at  all,  you  will  understand  why, 
when  an  opportunity  like  this  does  come,  I  am  forced  to  improve 
the  shining  hour  and  make  all  the  hay  possible.  I  am  glad  to 
admit,  however,  that  while  the  best  work  for  the  improvement 
of  public  schools  is  being  done  in  North  Carolina,  there  are  good 
seconds.  Kentucky,  Alabama,  Texas,  Georgia  and  the  two  Caro- 
linas  now  form  our  Interstate  League,  and  I  hope  at  this  meet- 
ing steps  may  be  taken  to  bring  in  all  of  our  Southern  States. 

When  I  think  of  the  work  that  the  Betterment  Associations 
have  done  during  the  year  for  their  public  schools,  I  must  con- 
fess that  my  feeling  is  one  of  good  old-fashioned  pride  and  vain- 
glory. Even  a  decent  regard  for  the  opinions  of  mankind  cannot 
make  me  modest.  And  I  know  that  by  the  time  I  have  told  you 
all  that  my  ten  minutes  will  allow,  you  will  be  as  conceited  as  I 
am.  And  we  are  not  going  to  worry  because  so  much  remains 


110          WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

to  be  done.  That  will  only  inspire  us  to  greater  efforts  in  the 
future.  Think  what  a  stupid  world  this  would  be  if  we  had 
nothing  to  do  but  sit  and  fold  our  hands.  But  you  must  have  a 
partial  record  of  our  golden  deeds.  In  Alabama,  under  the  wise 
and  enthusiastic  leaership  of  Mrs.  J.  D.  Matlock,  School  Im- 
provement Associations  have  been  organized  all  over  the  State 
and  thousands  of  dollars  raised  and  expended  for  the  building 
and  equipment  of  school-houses.  Kindergartens  have  been  estab- 
lished, grounds  beautified  with  trees  and  frowers,  books  and 
statuary  and  pictures  purchased.  Meetings  have  been  held  and 
interest  stimulated  in  the  schools  in  a  way  that  has  never  before 
been  attempted.  The  ladies  have  attended  Teachers'  Meetings 
and  Summer  Institutes,  and  have  done  everything  in  their  power 
to  bring  about  the  realization  of  their  ambition :  to  have  schools 
where  the  children  will  be  instructed  not  only  in  the  three  R's. 
but  also  in  music,  drawing,  cooking,  sewing  and  practical  agri- 
culture, with  each  department  and  grade  in  charge  of  an  ex- 
pert. They  want  good  roads  and  free  transportation  for  the 
children  who  live  too  far  from  the  schools  to  walk.  The  build- 
ings must  be  convenient,  sanitary  and  attractive,  equipped  with 
all  needed  apparatus,  libraries,  etc.,  adorned  with  pictures  and 
statuary,  and  surrounded  by  spacious  and  well  kept  grounds. 
They  are  striving  to  make  the  school  the  social,  literary  and  art 
center  of  the  community.  Isn't  that  a  beautiful  ambition,  and 
aren't  you  glad  that  it  is  yours  and  mine  as  well,  and  that  we 
have  had  the  blessed  privilege  of  helping  even  ever  so  little, 
to  brins  it  to  pass? 

In  Tennessee  an  Association,  only  a  year  old,  reports  a  piano, 
free  singing  lessons,  school  drills  by  a  retired  army  officer,  good 
library,  pictures  and  magazines— and  all  brought  about  by  one 
woman's  efforts. 

In  Arkansas  one  Association  raised  $400,  another  $200,  in  less 
than  three  months;  the  funds  of  course  being  applied  to  the  im- 
provement of  schools.  In  Texas  the  Women's  Clubs  are  taking 
up  the  matter— giving  time  and  labor  and  money.  They  have 
not  been  able  to  accomplish  a  great  deal  because  the  State  and 
County  Superintendents  have  not  co-operated  with  them  as  they 


MKS.     PATTEESOX  111 

have  done  in  our  own  States.  Why,  when  help  is  so  sorely 
needed,  it  should  be  refused  when  offered,  is  one  of  the  myste- 
ries. However,  I  am  glad  to  say  the  Texas  women  are  not  easily 
discouraged,  but  keep  pegging  away,  and  some  day  they  will 
have  their  reward. 

Virginia  reports  243  organizations  doing  fine  work,  ajid  I 
would  call  particular  attention  to  their  wisdom  in  securing  recog- 
nition and  aid  from  the  press.  It  is  of  very  great  importance. 
Fourteen  Virginia  papers  publish  from  a  column  to  a  page  of 
educational  matter  once  a  week,  and  172  papers  publish  such  mat- 
ter whenever  it  is  furnished  them.  Each  League  is  asked  to 
send  an  account  of  its  work  from  time  to  time  to  the  local  papers. 

In  my  own  county,  Forsyth,  we  began  work  in  1902.  One 
month  we  drove  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  visited  thirty-four 
schools,  attended  Teachers'  Institutes,  and  talked  to  teachers, 
children,  committeemen  and  parents,  trying  to  impress  upon  all 
tlie  necessity  for  libraries,  clean  school-houses,  pictures,  maps 
and  blackboards  on  the  walls,  and  neat  and  attractive  grounds. 

We  begged  that  windows  be  washed  and  stoves  polished,  that 
door  mats  and  wood  boxes  be  provided,  and  that  old  papers  and 
boxes  be  thrown  into  the  fire  instead  of  out  of  doors.  We  en- 
deavored by  every  means  in  our  power  to  interest  the  people 
themselves  in  their  schools;  for  until  they  are  interested,  no  im- 
provement can  be  permanent.  Thirty-two  of  the  thirty-four 
promised  to  improve  houses  and  grounds,  and  thus  win  the  set  of 
pictures  promised  by  the  Youth's  Companion  to  any  school  so 
doing. 

A  number  of  schools  set  to  work  at  once  to  raise  funds  for  a 
small  library.  The  teachers  got  up  entertainments  and  charged 
ten  cents  admission;  they  gave  lawn  parties  and  sold  refresh- 
ments; they  walked  miles  after  school  hours,  going  from  patron 
to  patron  to  ask  for  small  sums  to  add  to  the  precious  hoard. 

The  children  did  their  share;  they  picked  up  chips  and  fed 
the  pigs  and  washed  dishes  and  tended  the  baby  and  brought 
their  pennies  to  help  swell  the  fund. 

Sometimes  the  Women 's  Clubs,  hearing  of  an  especially  needy 
section,  would  give  a  set  of  books;  one  library  was  given  in 


112  WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

memory  of  a  dead  friend  who  had  been  particularly  interested 
in  the  work.  Here  a  little  and  there  a  little,  the  schools  have 
been  supplied  with  reading  matter  until  now  instead  of  six 
libraries  there  are  sixty. 

With  magazines  the  work  is  easier.  Friends  and  foes  have 
been  asked  to  give  their  old  magazines,  pictures,  calendars  and 
pretty  advertisements.  These  are  sorted  into  bundles  and  given 
to  the  teachers  at  their  monthly  meetings.  The  pictures  are  placed 
on  the  bare  walls,  the  magazines  are  placed  on  the  tables  where 
the  children  can  get  them.  Then  when  visiting  schools  we  take 
them  papers  and  magazines. 

With  a  fortune  of  ten  dollars  in  cur  treasury,  we  bought  pic- 
tures of  the  native  birds  and  placed  them  in  each  school-house. 
The  children  had  their  choice  of  pictures  of  places,  people  or 
birds,  and  they  chose  the  birds.  When  children  have  done  extra 
good  work  in  cleaning  the  yard,  we  give  the  school  a  nicely 
framed  picture.  Should  the  teachev  alone  do  the  work,  the  pic- 
ture is  given  to  her. 

We  have  visited  schools  in  the  morning  and,  returning  by 
noon,  have  seen  the  big  boys  grubbing  stumps,  the  little  boys 
gathering  and  burning  old  woods  and  trash,  and  the  girls  sweep- 
ing the  school-house.  Later,  we  hope  to  have  good  walks  made, 
and  evergreens  planted.  One  school  celebrated  the  teacher's 
sixtieth  birthday  by  setting  out  a  row  of  trees  from  the  road  to 
the  school-house. 

After  each  school  is  visited,  a  full  report  of  its  condition,  with 
the  names  of  the  teacher  and  children  who  are  working  to  im- 
prove it.  is  published  in  the  local  papers,  and  copies  are  sent  to 
all  interested.  This  is  very  important,  as  it  encourages  the 
teachers  and  brings  about  a  good  natural  rivalry  as  to  which  one 
shall  have  the  best  report.  If  it  is  impossible  to  praise  a  school, 
we  say  simply  that  it  was  visited,  that  is  all;  but  it  is  enough. 
Every  one  knows  what  that  means. 

Now,  of  course,  this  takes  work  and  time,  but  if  properly  man- 
aged it  can  be  done  without  disarranging  the  household  machin- 
ery. Maybe  you  feel  like  asking  what  so  many  people  do  ask 
us,  "What  are  your  husbands  doing  all  this  time?"  They  are 


MRS.     PATTEKSOZV  113 

doing  just  what  they  have  been  doing  ever  since  they  had  the 
great  good  luck  to  get  us— doing  their  day's  work  in  the  world, 
like  men.  and  coming  home  joyously  in  the  evening. 

October  and  November  are  the  best  months  for  visiting  schools, 
as  the  roads  are  good  and  the  weather  is  pleasant.  We  drive 
about  twenty-five  miles  a  day,  starting  out  at  nine  o'clock,  after 
the  aforesaid  man  of  the  family  has  had  his  breakfast  and  is 
down  at  the  office.  We  visit  about  live  schools,  stopping  at  noon 
for  a  picnic  lunch  for  ourselves  and  to  feed  and  rest  the  horses. 
By  five  o'clock  we  are  at  home  again,  ready  to  receive,  welcome 
and  entertain  with  the  account  of  our  wanderings,  the  herein- 
before mentioned  gentleman  when  he  returns  from  his  ardous 
toil. 

County  after  county  tells  the  same  inspiring  tale  of  good 
works.  In  Caldwell  eighteen  schools  obtained  libraries.  Cleve- 
land organized  an  Association  which  affected  all  the  public 
schools,  $150  being  received  for  improvements.  Twelve  libra- 
ries were  established  and  twelve  houses  were  improved,  the 
value  cf  which  was  increased  from  $1,800  to  $5,000.  In  Co- 
lumbus thirty  schools  wrere  improved.  Two  of  them  raised  $50 
for  pictures.  Cumberland  reported  that  every  school  in  the 
county  was  reached,  and  that  $75  was  given  for  improvements. 
In  Dare  a  large  number  of  pictures  was  placed  in  the  schools, 
while  $150  Avas  raised  for  libraries  and  $50  for  other  improve- 
ments. An  enthusiastic  branch,  whose  work  affected  thirty- 
three  schools,  was  reported  from  Greene,  where  the  Association 
raised  $50  for  libraries  and  $115  ior  other  improvements.  In 
Henderson  every  woman  teacher  in  the  county  was  a  member  of 
the  Association;  all  the  schools  were  reached,  and  $60  was 
raised  for  libraries.  Madison  reported  $11.45  for  pictures,  $55 
for  libraries  and  $250  for  other  improvements.  In  Rockingham 
a  large  Association,  affecting  seventy-two  schools,  raised  $50  for 
improvements.  During  the  year  five  hundred  pictures  were 
hung  on  the  walls  of  the  public  school  houses,  twelve  libraries 
were  established,  and  two  houses  valued  at  $2,300  were  built. 
In  Sampson  county,  which  reported  sixty  schools  affected  by  the 
Association,  $10  was  raised  for  pictures,  $257  for  libraries,  and 


WOMENS  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

$1,500  for  other  improvements.  Libraries  were  placed  in  twelve 
schools,  and  two  hundred  pictures  were  hung.  In  Surry 
county,  where  an  Association  had  been  organized  with  seventy- 
five  members,  every  school  in  the  county  was  reached.  Twenty- 
three  new  houses  were  built,  increasing  the  valuation  from  $1,200 
to  $5,750.  Wake  reported  an  active  Association,  affecting  fifty 
per  cent,  of  the  schools.  In  Wayne  an  Association,  organized 
with  230  active  members  and  fifteen  associate  members,  reached 
forty-three  schools  during  the  year.  Seventy-five  dollars  was 
raised  i'or  pictures,  $464  for  libraries,  and  $120  for  other  im- 
provements ;  206  framed  pictures  were  hung  and  forty-one  libra- 
ries were  established.  During  the  three  years  of  its  existence 
our  North  Carolina  Betterment  Association  reports  improve- 
ments valued  at  $48,000.  Isn't  that  fine?  And  can't  you  under- 
stand that  while  I  am  proud  of  all  of  our  associated  States,  my 
pride  in  my  own  -is  like  unto  that  of  Lucifer,  son  of  the  morn- 
ing! 

And  because  the  education  of  children  is  woman's  work  as 
well  as  womanly  work,  and  the  two  are  by  no  means  always 
synonymous,  we  hope  the  women  of  all  the  other  Southern  States 
will  follow  where  North  Carolina  has  blazed  the  way,  and  that 
every  State  and  every  county  will  have  its  Woman's  Better- 
ment Association. 

When  leisure  and  opportunity  meet,  there  also  is  obligation. 
Of  man  or  of  woman,  to  whom  much  is  given,  much  shall  be 
required.  Not  men  alone  brought  gifts  to  the  Tabernacle,  but 
the  women  came  also— "such  as  were  Avise  hearted,"  says  Holy 
Writ,  bringing  of  their  abundance  and  of  their  poverty  to  adorn 
the  visible  dwelling  place  of  Israel's  God,  who  had  been  to  both 
alike  the  pillar  of  fire  by  night  and  the  pillar  of  cloud  by  day. 

The  South  claims  three  plants  for  her  own— corn  which  feeds, 
cotton  which  clothes,  and  tobacco  which  soothes.  To-day  she 
has  added  a  fourth,  the  papyrus,  that  reed  immortal,  emblem 
of  the  written  knowledge  of  the  world;  and  when  Paul  has 
planted  and  Apollos  watered  and  God  has  given  the  increase, 
you  will  see  a  great  commonwealth  that  bestows  happy  homes 
upon  its  daughters,  and  business  opportunities  that  bring  for- 


MRS.    C.      P.    BARNES.  115 

tunes  t)  its  sons,  and  you  will  see  more  than  that,  for  it  will  be 
the  land  that  gives  to  mankind  the  imperishable  riches  of  pa- 
triotism, of  highest  aims  and  noblest  ambitions. 

MRS.  C.  P.  BARNES. 

THE    REPORT    OF    THE    EDUCATION    COMMITTEE    OF    THE    KENTUCKY 
FEDERATION  OF  WOMEN'S   CLUBS. 

Mrs.  C.  P.  Barnes,  Louisville,  Clmirman;  Dean  Irene  T. 
Myers,  Lexington;  Mrs.  Geo.  C.  Avery,  Louisville;  Mrs.  Wnv. 
Myall,  Paris;  Miss  Marilla  W.  Freeman,  Louisville;  Mrs.  Her* 
bert  W.  Mengel,  Louisville;  Mrs.  John  B.  Castleman,  Louisville. 

The  Kentucky  Federation  sends  greetings  and  counts  itself 
privileged  to  be  enrolled  a  member  of  this  Southern  Conference 
of  workers  for  public  school  betterment. 

In  all  work  for  reformation,  information  must  precede  activ- 
ity, hence  the  Education  Committee  planned  its  work  as  follows : 

First,  Investigating  conditions; 

Second,  Informing  the  public; 

Third,  Practical  work. 

To  collect  data  systematically,  this  committee  sent 'out  the  fol- 
lowing list  of  questions  to  every  club  in  the  State,  requesting 
that  answers  be  returned  after  pers^oal  investigation  of  their 
schools : 

1.  How  many  members  has  your  Board  of  Education? 

2.  How  are  they  elected?  i.  e.,  Does  their  election  result  from 
political  affiliations  or  from  educational  qualifications? 

3.  How  long  is  the  term  of  office  ? 

4.  What  is  the  occupation  of  each  member  of  your  Board  ? 

5.  How  many  of  your  Board  had  less  than  a  grammar  school 
education?     How  many  had  a  grammar  school  education,  high 
school  education,  college  education? 

6.  By  whom  are  your  teachers  appointed :  by  the  whole  Board, 
by  a   Sub-Committee,   by  Superintendent  and   Sub-Committee, 
or  by  Superintendent  alone? 

7.  How  many  teachers  in  your  schools? 


116          WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

8.  What  is  the  average  salary  of  teachers  in  the  primary 
grades,  in  the  grammar  grades,  in  the  high  school  ? 

9.  What  is  the  average  number  of  pupils  to  each  teacher  in 
primary  grades,  in  grammar  grades? 

10.  How  many  of  your  teachers  were  native  to  your  town  ? 

11.  How  many  graduates  of  a  normal  school  have  you  in  your 
primary  grades,  in  your  grammar  grades,  in  your  high  school? 

12.  How  many  college  graduates  have  you  in  your  primary 
grades,  in  your  grammar  grades,  in  your  high  school  ? 

13.  Have  you  manual  training  in  your  primary  grades,  in 
your  grammar  grades,  in  your  high  school?     Is  it  compulsory 
and  regular  or  at  the  discretion  of  the  teacher? 

14.  Have  you  physical  culture  in  your  primary  grades,  in 
your  grammar  grades,  in  your  hign  school?     Is  it  compulsory 
and  regular  or  at  the  discretion  of  the  teacher  ? 

15.  Does  your  Board  of  Health  inspect  your  school  buildings, 
premises  and   children   regularly,   occasionally,   in   emergencies 
or  not  at  all? 

16.  Has  your  School  Board  ever  passed  a  resolution  providing 
that  all  persons  engaged  as  teachers  in  the  public  schools  must 
have  a  certificate  from  a  competent  physician  to  the  effect  that 
they  are  entirely  free  from  tuberculosis  in  any  form,  and  are  the 
provisions  of  the  resolution  carried  out? 

17.  Is  the  Compulsory  Education  Law  enforced?    Have  you 
truant  officers  and  how  many? 

18.  What  would  be  the  procedure  necessary  in  order  to  get 
your  public  schools  completely  divorced  from  politics? 

19.  Will  you  visit  and  note  carefully  the  condition  of  your 
school  buildings  and  their  premises,  the  ventilation,  the  drink- 
ing water,  the  play  grounds?    Are  the  floors  and  desks  kept  clean 
and  reasonably  free  from  dust? 

20.  Last,  but  not  least,  what  is  your  opinion,  after  careful 
consideration,  of  the  moral  atmosphere  of  your  schools  ?    In  how 
far  do  you  think  your  teachers  realize  that  the  end  and  aim  of 
all  education  is  to  develop  a  moral  personality? 

Gradually  the  answers  came  in,  revealing  deplorable  condi- 
tions in  our  public  school  system. 


MRS.    C.      P.    BARNES.  117 

Simultaneous  with  this  investigation  of  our  public  schools,  was 
one  equally  searching  of  our  high  schools,  colleges  and  profes- 
sional schools. 

We  found  that  first-class  high  schools  were  practically  non- 
existent ;  that  colleges  were  doing  the  work  which  should  be  done 
by  the  high  schools;  that  professional  schools  were  weakened 
because  their  students  came  to  them  unprepared ;  that  there  was 
little  articulation  between  colleges  and  high  schools,  and  that 
there  was  no  co-operation  between  the  colleges  themselves. 

With  these  facts  in  hand,  we  were  ready  to  go  before  the  pub- 
lic. These  two  investigations  were  printed  in  pamphlet  form 
and  distributed  among  the  clubs  as  campaign  literature. 

Clubs  held  "Education  Day"  and  invited  the  public  to  hear 
these  two  investigations  of  the  Education  Committee. 

This  printed  report  was  sent  to  every  editor  in  the  State,  with 
the  urgent  request  for  editorial  space  the  first  week  in  Feb- 
ruary, which  had  been  set  apart  for  "Education  Week." 

Ministers  were  personally  requested  to  preach  on  the  subject 
the  Sunday  following.  Many  a  preacher  took  not  only  his  text, 
but  his  sermon  bodily  from  this  printed  report. 

Having  brought  these  conditions  before  the  thinking  public, 
our  final  step  was  to  begin  active  work. 

As  Kentucky  is  an  agricultural  State,  with  four-fifths  of  her1 
population  in  the  rural  districts,  our  first  work  is  with  the  rural 
school  after  the  manner  of  that  inaugurated  by  the  women  of 
North  Carolina. 

We  issued  our  second  number  of  campaign  literature  contain- 
ing the  following  statements: 

PAINFUL   CONDITIONS. 

In  the  report  of  the  Commissioner  of  Education  for  1902  are 
tables  based  on  the  census  of  1900. 

Table  24  shows  rank  of  each  State  in  percentage  of  illiteracy 
of  her  whole  population.  Kentucky  is  thirty-seventh  in  the  de- 
scending scale. 

Table  25  shows  the  rank  of  each  State  in  percentage  of  illit- 
eracy of  her  white  population.  Kentucky  is  forty-second  in  the 
descending  scale. 


118          WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

Table  26  shows  the  rank  of  each  State  in  percentage  of  illit- 
eracy of  her  native  born  population,  and  Kentucky  is  forty-third 
in  the  descending  scale. 

Twenty-two  per  cent,  of  the  white  children  of  Kentucky  be- 
tween the  ages  of  10  and  14  are  not  in  school. 

Fifty  per  cent,  of  the  children  of  school  age  are  not  in  school. 

Seventy  per  cent,  of  her  children  of  school  age  live  in  the 
rural  districts. 

There  are  1,238  old  log  school-houses  in  the  rural  districts. 

There  are  2,107  schools  without  seats  and  blackboards. 

There  are  4,584  schools  without  globes,  maps,  charts  and  other 
suitable  educational  aids. 

Another  census  will  be  taken  in  1910,  and  if  it  is  to  give  us  a 
better  record  than  did  the  last,  all  the  forces  of  the  State  must 
be  joined  for  the  improvement  of  our  public  schools. 

This  being  the  case,  the  Education  Committee  of  the  Ken- 
tucky Federation  of  "Women's  Clubs  appeals  to  every  organiza- 
tion of  women  in  the  State  to  co-operate  with  them  in  the  work 
for  school  betterment. 

Believing  that  the  rural  schools  should  be  the  strategic  point 
in  this  movement,  we  beg  to  submit  to  you  the  following  sugges- 
tions : 

Let  each  organization  of  Women's  Clubs,  History  Clubs,  Cur- 
rent Events  Clubs,  Literature  Clubs,  the  Colonial  Dames,  D.  A. 
R. 's,  the  Daughters  of  the  Confederacy,  Council  of  Jewish  Wo- 
men, Missionary  Societies,  King's  Daughters,  and  even  Sunday- 
school  classes.,  adopt  a  country  school,  make  friends  with  the 
teacher,  and  form  the  following  neighborhood  committees: 

FIRST— A    COMMITTEE   ON   SCHOOL   GROUNDS. 

Hav?  the  stumps  removed,  grouncl  spaded  and  trees  and  grass 
planted.  Have  a  lawn  in  front  of  the  school-house  and  walks 
at  the  side.  Have  a  school  garden,  a  group  of  trees  and  screens 
of  vines  in  the  background. 

SECOND  — COMMITTEE  ON  SCHOOL  BUILDINGS. 

Have  either  a  modern  school  built  or  the  old  one  repaired. 
Have  oid  rough  benches  exchanged  for  good  desks.  Have  black- 


MISS   IRENE    J.    MYERS  ,    119 

boards,  maps  and  pictures  on  the  walls.  Have  shades  at  the 
windows.  Have  the  school  perfectly  clean  before  the  session 
opens,  and  keep  it  clean.  "Preach  and  practice  the  gospel  of 
paint  and  whitewash." 

THIRD— A  COMMITTEE  ON  SANITATION. 

Examine  the  water  supply.  See  that  the  spring  or  well  is  in 
good  condition.  Have  systematic  medical  examination  of  the 
entire  school. 

FOURTH— A  COMMITTEE  ON  ENTERTAINMENT. 

Devise  plans  for  raising  money  for  the  library.  Have  lectures 
for  the  neighborhood.  Make  the  school-house  the  center  of  civic 
interest.  Occasionally  have  a  lecture  or  a  concert  at  the  neigh- 
borhood church. 

First,  last,  and  always,  uphold  the  hands  of  the  teacher. 
Help  her,  encourage  her,  invite  her  to  your  club  or  organization. 
In  all  let  the  spirit  be,  ' '  Thy  neighbor  as  thyself. ' ' 

With  a  united  effort  for  the  betterment  of  public  school  houses 
for  Kentucky  the  way  will  be  opened  for — 

Longer  school  terms; 

Normal  trained  teachers; 

Better  paid  teachers ; 

School  Boards  divorced  from  politics. 

Will  you  adopt  a  rural  school  to-day? 

Miss  IRENE  T.  MYERS,  OF  LEXINGTON,  KY. 

Our  local  Committee  on  Education  was  formed  at  the  time  the 
State  Education  Committee  of  the  Federated  Clubs  first  sent  its 
appeal  for  co-operation  to  every  organization  of  women  in  Ken- 
tucky about  one  month  and  a  half  ago ;  hence  it  is  too  young 
to  present  results  to  you  to-day.  But  during  the  short  period  of 
its  existence,  it  has  met  with  difficulties,  and  had  to  face  prob- 
lems, and  it  has  had  to  decide  some  questions  of  policy.  We  are 
bringing  a  few  of  these  things  before  you,  in  the  hope  that  from 
your  larger  experience  you  will  offer  suggestions  to  us. 

To  many  of  you  I  shall  seem  to  be  speaking  of  very  elementary 
things,  but  I  can  assure  you  that  even  these  have  taken  cur 


120  WOMEN'S  CO-OPEfiATION   IN   NORTH   CAROLINA 

time  and  thought,  and  perhaps  some  of  you,  if  we  might  have 
the  benefit  of  your  advice,  could  have  helped  us  to  begin 
in  a  better  way.  The  story  of  our  effort,  so  far,  is  as  follows: 

Our  Committee  went  carefully  over  the  women 's  organizations 
in  Lexington  and  decided  first  to  place  before  the  Daughters 
of  the  Revolution,  the  United  Daughters  of  the  Confederacy, 
the  King's  Daughters,  and  the  Chautauqua  Circle,  a  few  start- 
ling facts  which  would  present  to  them  a  vivid  picture  of  the 
educational  situation  in  Kentucky,  and  to  ask  for  their  help 
towards  improving  it.  We  tell  them  frankly  also  some  of  tne 
ways  in  which  we  think  they  can  be  most  helpful.  And  here  at 
the  beginning  is  a  point  where  we  feel  the  need  of  a  comparison 
of  methods. 

Our  State  Committee  had  recommended  to  the  local  organi- 
zations the  adoption  by  each  of  some  special  school,  but  we  knew 
that  this  recommendation  was  to  be  followed  in  the  spirit  rather 
than  to  the  letter,  so  we  modified  it  to  suit  our  conditions.  In- 
stead of  interesting  ourselves  as  organizations  each  in  some 
particular  school,  we  are  selecting  certain  public-spirited  women 
who  live  in  the  country — some  of  them  club  members  and  some 
of  them  not — and  are  asking  them  to  work  with  the  teachers  of 
their  local  school  in  organizing  the  people  of  their  neighborhoods 
into  School  Betterment  Associations.  In  other  words,  we  are 
trying  to  have  the  work  undertaken  by  the  people  closest  to  it. 

Kentucky  ha*  been  considering  the  placing  of  a  State  Organ- 
izer of  such  Associations  in  the  field  during  the  coming  summer. 
I  should  like  to  ask  whether  this  method  has  been  the  most  suc- 
cessful used  elsewhere? 

We  have  had  come  under  our  observation  one  instance,  where 
the  external  application  of  well-meant  advice  upon  a  group  of 
teachers  by  a  club  woman  resulted  only  in  irritation.  She  did 
not  know  them  personally,  and  they  felt  at  once  that  she  did 
not  take  into  account  their  discouragements  and  difficulties.  Is 
this  situation  likely  to  be  created  also  by  an  organizer  ?  We  have 
thought  that,  in  so  far  as  we  can,  we  must  guard  against  it; 
what  has  seemed  to  us  the  best  way  is,  as  I  have  indicated,  to 
let  the  initiative  be  taken  by  one  in  the  immediate  neighborhood 


MISS   IREXE   J.    MYERS  121 

concerned.  Further,  my  committee  has  felt  that  it  will  be  im- 
possible to  keep  up,  for  any  extended  time,  even  the  externali- 
ties with  which  we  deal  when  we  improve  school  buildings  and 
grounds  and  look  after  the  sanitation,  unless,  not  only  the  pa- 
trons of  the  school  become  deeply  and  intelligently  interested  in 
it,  but  also  the  pupils  themselves  are  led  through  their  teacher 
and  through  their  parents,  to  regard  the  school  as  their  own 
property  and  are  thus  induced  to  iake  part  in  making  the  im- 
provements. We  have  felt  that  although  this  is  a  much  slower 
process  than  to  induce  some  person  with  abundant  means  to  put 
things  into  good  condition  at  her  own  expense,  it  is  nevertheless 
a  surer  process,  and  will  count  for  more  in  the  end. 

Certainly  to  attain  the  results  we  desire,  a  wise  leadership 
is  needed  in  each  neighborhood,  and  we  should  like  an  expres- 
sion of  opinion  as  to  the  best  way  to  secure  it. 

There  is  another  difficulty  which  we  have  met  just  at  this 
point.  Our  method  of  going  to  work  consumes  a  great  deal  of 
time,  because  much  talking  must  be  done  with  each  woman  who 
undertakes  the  organization  of  her  immediate  neighborhood, 
Not  only  that,  but  we  feel  our  own  poverty  of  resource  when 
we  must  offer  suggestions.  If  we  had,  in  accessible  form,  the  ex- 
periences of  the  other  women  who  have  done  much ;  if  we  could 
give  these  new  workers  a  few  brief  but  vivid  accounts  of  the  work 
elsewhere,  it  wrould  be  very  helpful  both  to  them  and  to  us. 
I  shall  have  to  supply,  in  some  way,  the  same  need  in  connection 
with  a  group  of  young  women  in  Kentucky  Ui  iversity,  who  have 
been  deeply  interested  in  the  scraps  of  information  they  have 
been  able  to  pick  up,  and  who  want  to  be  of  service  in  their  sec- 
tions of  the  State  during  next  summer.  I  do  not  doubt  that 
there  are  other  young  women  in  other  institutions  who  could 
be  enlisted  in  this  work  if  we  had  some  suggestive  material  to 
place  in  their  hands. 

In  our  effort  to  enlist  the  co-operation  of  other  women's  or- 
ganizations in  our  immediate  section,  we  turned  first  to  the 
United  Daughters  of  the  Confederacy,  and  before  presenting 
our  plan  to  the  local  chapter,  I  wroje  to  the  president  of  the 
Kentucky  Division  and  asked  for  her  assistance.  Her  response 


122          WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

was  most  cordial,  and  after  requesting  that  we  forward  to  her 
some  of  our  printed  matter,  that  she  might  send  it  to  the  sev- 
enty-five chapters  in  the  State,  with  a  personal  appeal  that  they 
endorse  the  work  and  do  what  they  could  to  add  to  its  success, 
she  continued,  "The  imperative  need  of  this  great  work  appeals 
to  me  strongly,  and  I  stand  ready  and  anxious  to  render  all 
the  service  I  can.  The  additional  work  only  assures  me  addi- 
tional pleasure,  and  the  success  that  will  come  in  the  end  will 
repay  our  every  effort. ' ' 

1  believe  that  the  Daughters  of  the  Confederacy  can  be  made 
one  of  the  most  forceful  influences  in  forwarding  this  movement 
in  Kentucky.  While  they  have  been  devotedly  perpetuating  the 
memories  of  the  Old  South  they  have  learned  to  work  together 
with  definite  purpose.  If  their  loyalty,  and  energy,  and  expe- 
rience in  co-operation  is  directed  towards  a  constructive  effort 
for  the  New  South,  it  will  produce  results  which  we  cannot  now 
measure. 

Jn  deciding  to  bring  the  conditions  of  our  schools  before  the 
Chautauqua  Circle,  which  in  Lexington  is  a  large  organization 
composed  both  of  men  and  women,  we  went  beyond  the  appeal 
which  was  issued  by  the  Federated  Clubs  to  women's  organiza- 
tions, and  it  did  not  seem  to  be  practicable  to  make  the  same 
suggestions  to  them  which  we  had  made  elsewhere.  We  ask 
them  to  study  conditions  more  thoroughly,  to  give  to  this  effort 
for  the  betterment  of  schools  the  endorsement  of  published  reso- 
lutions, and  to  aid  to  the  extent  of  their  influence  in  creating  a 
demand  for  an  aggressive  educational  policy  in  the  State. 

We  decided  to  make  a  similar  request  of  the  Civic  League,  a 
bo<ly  composed  both  of  men  and  women. 

I  should  like  to  ask  just  what  sort  of  appeal  has  been  made 
elsewhere  to  such  organizations  as  these?  What  definite  assist- 
ance have  they  been  asked  to  give? 

Having  seen  the  advantages  of  a  co-educational  policy,  it  was 
inevitable  that  we  should  seek  to  bring  our  plea  for  better  schools 
before  men  segregated  in  organization,  as  we  had  before  women. 
And,  indeed,  why  should  we  not  bring  this  plea  straight  before 
the  men  of  the  country?  It  is  they  who  have  in  their  hands 


MISS   IRENE   J.    MYERS  123 

the  best  means  of  righting  the  wrong  which  is  being  done  to  the 
children.  It  is  they  who  have  cast  their  ballots  for  the  policy 
which  has  been  pursued  in  Kentucky  and  elsewhere.  Surely 
it  is  most  fitting  that  they  be  asked  to  consider  this  matter.  At 
any  rate,  this  is  the  way  in  which  my  committee  looked  at  it. 
Consequently  we  went  to  the  Director  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  of 
Lexington  and  got  from  him  a  list  of  the  men's  organizations 
in  the  city,  and  also  some  suggestions  as  to  the  individuals  most 
likely  to  be  useful  to  us  in  bringing  the  subject  before  the  various 
lodges,  chapters  and  labor  unions.  We  are  not  at  all  sure  that 
it  is  usual  in  these  organizations  to  discuss  such  a  question  as 
this  of  our  schools,  but  we  wish  that  it  might  become  so,  and  we 
have  the  promise  that  in  at  least  some  of  them  it  will  be  con- 
sidered. 

Does  it  seem  to  any  one  that  we  are  coming  too  close  to  the 
awful  pit  of  politics  ?  But  the  schools  are  down  there  in  that  pit. 
We  are  trying  to  get  together  a  rescuing  party  of  men,  but  if  they 
are  not  willing  to  go,  we  shall  have  to  go  down  there  ourselves. 
Parenthetically,  I  would  say,  that  the  sooner  we  get  all  of  the 
reputable  citizens  of  our  country  into  politics,  the  better.  In 
speaking  as  I  have  I  do  not  wish  to  be  misunderstood,  for  we 
have  been  given  cordial  help  by  most  of  the  men  from  whom  we 
have  asked  it.  For  instance,  our  papers  are  edited  by  men  who 
have  given  us  practically  unlimited  space  for  the  discussion  of 
the  educational  situation,  and  it  >s  chiefly  men  who  are  con- 
tributing to  this  discussion. 

Again,  for  instance,  when  we  brought  the  matter  before  our 
Ministers'  Union,  they  took  it  up  with  enthusiasm,  and  resolved 
to  preach  each  a  sermon  on  education,  and  to  arouse  as  much 
interest  as  possible  in  the  subject.  We  considered  it  fortunate 
that  when  we  went  before  them  we  hit  upon  a  joint  meeting  of 
the  white  and  colored  ministers. 

We  hope  that  through  the  various  means,  we  shall  help  to 
make  more  and  more  insistent  the  demand  of  both  our  voting 
and  our  non- voting  population  for  more  efficient  educational  ser- 
vice in  Kentucky. 


124  WOMENS  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

MRS.  L.  R.  DASHIELL,  or  RICHMOND,  VA. 

Madame  Chairman,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

The  spirit  of  the  Conference  seems  to  be  not  so  much  to  tell 
what  any  particular  section  has  accomplished,  but  rather  what 
that  accomplishment  may  mean  in  the  way  of  encouragement  to 
another  section. 

Virginia  has  endeavored  to  do  something  for  her  common 
schools;  positively,  she  has  done  much;  comparatively,  there  is 
yet  much  to  do. 

The  task  of  all  women  in  Virginia  who  are  interested  in  the 
well-being  of  the  great  common  school  is  a  task  of  infinite  deli- 
cacy and  much  difficulty;  but  there  is  no  discouragement  in  it, 
because  the  school  officials,  the  State  Board  of  Education  and 
all  the  piled-up  powers  that  be  help  to  open  the  way,  and  by 
their  co-operation,  to  forward  every  work.  Once  in  a  while 
one  meets  a  perfectly  stiff-necked  generation,  and  sometimes, 
unfortunately,  it  happens  to  be  a  superintendent.  Such  a  case 
calls  for  all  the  guile  of  a  simple-hearted  woman,  all  the  finesse 
of  a  Machiavelli,  all  the  endurance  of  a  Spartan,  but  the  end  is 
not  yet  for  that  man ;  he  must  be  sent  to  meet  the  visitor  and 
after  a  long  drive  from  depot  to  school-house,  if  he  be  not  con- 
verted or  dead  the  visitor  would  best  return  home  and  stay  there. 

Bear  in  mind  that  the  aim  of  the  visitor  is  only  to  interest 
the  community  in  its  own  school;  to  help  the  women  and  the 
patrons  generally  to  realize  their  responsibility  and  privilege; 
to  show  them  that  social  progress  depends  on  social  co-ordina- 
tion. If  this  can  be  simply  and  strongly  impressed  on  a  hand- 
ful of  earnest  women,  the  leaven  is  set,  and  in  no  community 
thai  I  know  does  one  fail  to  find  at  least  one  intrepid,  influen- 
tial woman.  If  such  an  one  become  interested  the  chances  are 
that  before  sunset  ten  more  will  be  interested  and  in  ever  widen- 
ing circles  the  interest  will  reach  until  some  unwary  man  finds 
himself  committed  to  help.  Then  indeed  there  is  hope  of  pro- 
gress and  practical  results. 

In  Virginia  the  work  of  organizing  School  Improvement 
Leagues  has  not  been  accomplished  through  a  federation  of 


MISS   ALICE   ^f.    PARKER  125 

clubs,  but  rather  through  the  Co-operative  Education  Associa- 
tion, a  body  composed  of  men  and  women,  officials  and  non- 
officials,  with  one  aim,  one  hope  and  one  supreme  faith— the 
status  to-day  justifies  aim,  hope  and  faith. 

Community  effort,  community  organization,  community  ambi- 
tion, zeal,  with  determination  not  to  cease  striving  till  that  par- 
ticular community  has  done  all  to  bring  its  school  into  its  best 
estate,  is  the  solution  of  our  rural  educational  problem.  Such 
effort  must  eventually  bring  us  to  consolidation,  local  taxation 
and  compulsory  education.  Then  perhaps  we  may  rest  and 
expatiate,  but  not  till  then. 

The  gavel  is  about  to  fall;  I  must  hasten.  By  virtue  of  the 
untiring  efforts  of  the  Co-operative  Education  Association  and 
the  Department  of  Public  Instruction,  with  the  invaluable  help 
of  the  press,  there  are  to-day  in  Virginia  three  hundred  and  ten 
local  Education  Associations,  each  independent  as  to  constitu- 
tion and  by-laws,  as  well  as  to  the  work  undertaken,  but  inter- 
dependent and  co-ordinate  as  to  ultimate  results. 

The  time  is  too  brief  to  tell  you  more  of  how  all  this  has 
been  done.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  I  have  beeen  impressed  even 
to  the  verge  of  astonishment  at  a  condition  which  has  come  to 
pass  for  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  world— a  condition 
touching  the  educational  awakening  in  Virginia.  It  is  this  (and 
remember  it  is  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  world  that 
r.nch  a  thing  has  come  to  pass)  :  The  men  of  Virginia  are  doing 
this  work  and  the  women  are  getting  all  the  credit.  This  aston- 
ishes me.  What  does  not  astonish  me  is  that  the  Virginia  gen- 
tlemen know  the  situation  and  are  too  chivalrous  to  deny  us  the 
credit. 

You  will  now  hear  something  of  the  work  of  the  Richmond 
Education  Association,  the  pioneer  and,  at  present,  the  largest 
Association  in  the  State. 

Miss  ALICE  N.  PARKER,  OF  RICHMOND,  VA. 

Report  of  work  done  by  the  Richmond  Education  Associa- 
tion for  the  city  of  Richmond: 


126  WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  ix  STOR.TII  CAROLINA 

The  influence  of  the  Richmond  Education  Association  upon 
the  schools  of  the  city  has  increased  steadily  during  its  seven 
years  of  existence.  Its  first  achievement  was  the  successful 
transformation  of  Marshall  school  into  a  model  school  in  respect 
to  conditions  and  equipment.  During  that  first  year  it  also 
formed  a  Nature  Study  Committee  which  distributed  seeds  to 
children,  interested  teachers  in  the  subject,  put  window  boxes 
in  the  rooms,  and  planted  vines  on  the  outside  of  the  school 
buildings. 

The  Art  Committee  undertook  to  beautify  the  class  rooms 
with  pictures  and  has  distributed  many  fine  photographs  and 
casts  among  the  various  schools. 

The  introduction  of  kindergartens  and  manual  training  into 
the  city  schools  was  accomplished  by  the  efforts  of  the  Associa- 
tion four  years  ago.  Since  that  time  the  kindergartens  have 
been  increased  and  the  manual  training  extended  all  through 
the  school  system.  In  1901  was  established  a  training  school  for 
kindergartners,  which  is  still  successfully  running  and  has  sup- 
plied the  majority  of  the  teachers  for  the  public  kindergartens. 

Two  years  ago,  the  Association  established  Domestic  Science 
classes  in  the  Normal  School  for  Colored  Teachers  and  has  re- 
ce;ved  $3,000  from  the  Slater  Fund  for  this  purpose.  These 
classes— sewing  and  cooking  for  the  girls,  and  bench-work  for 
the  boys— are  under  the  direction  of  able  teachers,  and  have 
proved  most  beneficial  in  their  results.  The  School  Board  has 
now  faken  the  entire  financial  responsibility  for  these  classes. 

The  School  Visiting  Committee  visits  the  schools  twice  yearly, 
comes  in  friendly  and  sympathetic  touch  with  the  teachers  and 
keeps  itself  informed  as  to  the  needs  and  lines  of  progress. 

The  City  History  Committee  has  done  much  to  awaken  the  in- 
terest and  the  civic  pride  of  the  children  preparing  for  these 
papers  on  the  historic  localities  in  their  midst. 

In  addition  to  these  direct  results,  the  Association  has  done 
much  to  arouse  and  educate  public  sentiment  in  regard  to  educa- 
tion by  a  series  of  free  lectures  by  distinguished  men.  These  lec- 
tures take  place  three  or  four  times  yearly  and  are  largely  at- 
tended. 


MISS    CARRIE   LEE   CAMPBELL  127 

As  part  of  its  work  for  the  ensuing  year  the  Association  will 
use  its  influence  with  the  Legislature  to  secure  the  establish- 
ment of  a  Juvenile  Court;  the  modern  means  of  saving  many  a 
boy  from  the  penitentiary  in  manhood. 

In  all  that  it  undertakes  the  Association  works  in  harmony 
with  the  school  authorities,  aiding  and  abetting  them  in  their 
plans  for  progress.  Through  their  combined  efforts  a  much- 
needed  new  high  school  has  been  secured  for  Richmond  and  the 
salaries  of  the  teachers  have  received  a  substantial  increase. 

Miss  CARRIE  LEE  CAMPBELL,  OF  RICHMOND,  VA. 

The  Art  Committee  of  the  Richmond  Education  Association 
has  for  its  raison  d'etre,  the  placing  of  pictures  and  casts  in  the 
sixteen  schools  of  our  city,  either  for  the  improvement  of  the 
artistic  taste  of  the  children,  or  for  the  broadening  of  their 
knowledge  of  historic  people  and  places. 

Early  in  its  history  the  Art  Committee  secured  the  permission 
of  the  School  Board  to  do  this  work,  and  they  have  ever  had  the 
cordial  co-operation  and  appreciation  of  both  principals  and 
teachers. 

The  committee  has  been  enabled  to  put  into  the  schools  about 
150  pictures  and  casts,  besides  a  "traveling  gallery"  of  twenty- 
five  pictures,  which  goes  from  school  to  school. 

One  of  the  first  plans  for  increasing  interest  and  raising  money 
was  an  exhibit  of  pictures  belonging  to  the  Berlin  Photograph 
Company,  at  which  exhibit  a  small  entrance  fee  was  charged, 
and  the  revenue  from  the  tickets  sold  to  scholars  in  any  room 
was  returned  to  that  room  for  the  purchase  of  a  picture.  As  a 
result,  pictures  to  the  amount  of  $225  were  put  in  the  schools. 

Since  that  time  the  work  has  gone  on  steadily,  the  teachers 
and  pupils  doing  much  for  their  own  schools,  aided  by  the  earnest 
principals. 

The  committee  has  given  lectures  and  entertainments  to  raise 
money,  and  occasionally  some  friend  has  presented  them  with  one 
or  more  pictures. 

Among  the  subjects  are  portraits  of  great  men;  copies  of 


128          WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

works  by  Landseer,  Bonheur,  Millet  and  Corot,  and  other  pic- 
tures of  nature;  and  a  miscellaneous  number  including  the  Sis- 
tine  Madonna,  Sir  Galahad,  and  many  others. 

Recently  the  leading  newspaper  of  our  city  (which  has  always 
given  itself  to  education)  arranged  with  Caproni,  of  Boston,  to 
secure  a  most  valuable  collection  of  thirty  or  forty  casts  of 
classic  art,  for  which  the  pupils  were  to  vote  by  means  of  cou- 
pons appearing  daily  in  the  paper.  A  two-fold  object  was  thus 
accompHshed;  five  schools  received  the  valuable  gifts,  and  all 
the  schools  received  a  great  impulse  in  esprit  de  corps. 

And  so,  little  by  little,  the  great  work  is  being  accomplished 
and  the  committee  is  encouraged  for  the  future. 

MRS.  J.  D.  MATLOCK,  OF  BIRMINGHAM,  ALA. 

One  of  the  commandments  in  the  decalogue  of  one  of  our  most 
ancient  organizations  is,  "Thou  shalt  hear  much;  thou  shalt 
speak  little;  thon  shalt  act  well."  Although  in  their  organiza- 
tion women  are  not  permitted,  perhaps  because  of  the  belief 
that  they  love  too  well  to  speak,  this  commandment  appeals  very 
strongly  to  me.  However,  I  am  glad  of  an  opportunity  to  ac- 
knowledge Alabama's  indebtedness  to  the  Conference  for  Edu- 
cation in  the  South  for  much  of  the  good  work  that  is  being  done 
there  for  education.  It  was  from  these  Conferences  that  our 
former  State  Superintendent  of  Education,  Mr.  Hill,  brought 
the  fire  of  enthusiasm  for  "School  Improvement,"  and  deliv- 
ered it  to  the  club  women,  who  in  turn  have  endeavored  to  co- 
operate with  the  educational  authorities  in  giving  it  to  the  peo- 
ple. 

In  order  to  obviate  any  prejudice  that  might  arise  from  a  fear 
that  we  would  attempt  to  meddle  with  the  management  of 
f-chools,  we  set  forth  as  our  purpose:  To  stimulate  the  people  in 
the  various  school  districts  of  the  State  to  organize  school  Tm- 
provement  Associations,  the  objects  of  which  are  to  bring  about  a 
greater  interest  in  the  schools,  and  to  provide  for  these  better 
material  equipment,  such  as  houses,  grounds,  furniture,  appa- 
ratus, libraries,  decoration,  etc.  We  believe  that  childhood  is 


MRS.    J.    D.    MATTOCK  129 

entitled  to  a  comfortable,  wholesome  and  attractive  environment 
and  that  the  people  themselves  should  make  an  exertion  to  pro- 
vide such  environment,  because  such  environment  and  such  ex- 
ertion facilitate  the  awakening  to  the  world-wonder  around  us; 
"the  wonder  of  setting  suns,  and  evening  stars,  of  the  magic 
spring  time,  the  blossoming  of  the  trees,  the  strange  transforma- 
tions of  the  moth ;  the  wonder  of  the  infinite  divinity  and  of  His 
boundless  revelation. ' ' 

Those  of  us  who  have  by  study  and  observation  reached  the 
realization  that  "Earth's  crammed  with  heaven,  and  every  com- 
mon bush  afire  with  God, ' '  we  owe  it  to  ourselves  and  to  the  world 
to  help  to  bring  about  the  general  appreciation  of  the  fact  that 
wherever  we  are  the  place  whereon  we  stand  is  holy  ground. 

In  December  of  1904  the  Alabama  Federation  of  Women's 
Clubs  adopted  a  resolution  creating  the  School  Improvement 
Committee,  leaving  this  committee  to  find  its  work.  The  first 
work  was  that  of  preparation— a  study  of  the  needs  and  how  to 
meet  them.  We  then  issued  a  circular  to  the  people  of  Alabama 
setting  forth  briefly  a  statement  of  conditions,  and  suggesting 
the  formation  of  School  Improvement  Associations.  The  State 
Department  of  Education  published  and  distributed  this  for  us, 
and  the  press,  the  physicians,  the  teachers,  the  railroads  and 
almost  every  other  force  in  the  State  lent  us  co-operation.  At 
first  the  members  of  the  committee  responded  as  far  as  possible 
to  every  call  to  present  the  work  or  assist  in  organizing  Asso- 
ciations, however  remotely  located  the  community  that  wanted 
us.  Now  that  the  work  is  started,  our  aim  is  to  devote  ourselves 
chiefly  to  the  organization  of  County  Associations,  whose  duty 
it  is  to  organize  and  foster  an  association  in  every  district  in  the 
county. 

After  less  than  two  years  of  active  work  we  have  eleven  County 
Associations,  about  fifty  District  Associations  and  four  City 
Associations.  The  following  are  examples  of  Association  work: 
At  Cleveland,  Blount  county,  a  rural  community  about  eight 
miles  from  a  railroad,  the  people  had  erected  one  of  the  best 
school  buildings  in  the  county,  but  felt  that  they  were  not  able 
at  that  time  to  finish  and  equip  it.  The  teacher,  having  heard 


130          WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

at  the  University  Summer  School  of  our  plans  for  school  im- 
provement, arranged  to  have  a  school  rally  on  the  tenth  of  last 
August,  one  of  the  results  of  which  was  the  Cleveland  School 
Improvement  Association.  Within  two  months  it  had  raised 
$871  and  spent  it  for  finishing  the  building  and  for  providing 
desks,  blackboards,  maps,  charts,  a  dictionary  and  stand,  a  musi- 
cal instrument,  brooms,  buckets,  dippers,  etc. 

The  Pike  County  School  Improvement  Association  was  organ- 
ized last  fall  but  did  not  begin  active  work  till  February  of  this 
year.  It  has  a  membership  of  one  hundred  and  has  organized 
seven  District  Associations.  Some  of  the  County  Associations 
have  offered  a  prize  of  $25  to  be  given  to  the  teacher  of  the 
school  that  reports  the  best  results  in  the  line  of  school  improve- 
ment work  during  the  year.  The  Alabama  Federation  of  Wo- 
men 's  Clubs  has  offered  a  prize  of  $100  to  be  given  to  the  County 
Association  that  submits  the  best  report  this  year. 

The  Birmingham  School  Improvement  Association  was  organ- 
ized in  February  of  last  year  and  has  raised  and  expended  more 
than  four  thousand  dollars.  The  improvements  include  a  grand 
piano,  pictures,  statuary,  libraries,  book  cases,  equipment  of  emer- 
gency rooms  where  children  may  be  cared  for  when  taken  sud- 
derly  ill,  apparatus  for  a  department  of  domestic  science,  appa- 
ratus for  play  grounds,  and,  perhaps  its  greatest  achievement, 
the  establishment  of  the  high  school  lunch.  The  Association 
has  fitted  up  a  dining  room  in  the  basement  of  the  high  school, 
employs  an  experienced  caterer  and  a  servant,  and  serves  a 
wholesome,  attractive  lunch  for  five  cents  each,  to  between  three 
and  four  hundred  pupils  every  school  day.  This  Association  has 
also  helped  the  families  of  ne«dy  children  so  as  to  make  it  pos- 
sible for  the  children  to  remain  in  school.  As  a  direct  result  of 
the  efforts  of  the  Birmingham  Association,  the  city  has  expended 
for  the  schools  about  seven  thousand  dollars.  Four  thousand 
dollars  of  this  was  spent  for  a  play  ground. 

Last  month  our  Legislature  enacted  a  law  appropriating 
$67,000.00  annually  for  building  and  repairing  rural  school- 
houses.  In  order  to  secure  a  portion  of  this  money  a  community 
must  raise  at  least  as  much  as  it  receives  from  the  State.  The* 


MRS.    ERWm    CRAIGHEAI)  131 


School  Improvement  Association  is  a  most  convenient  instru- 
ment for  raising  these  funds,  and  we  expect  by  the  end  of  this 
year  to  have  a  County  Association  in  every  county  in  the  State. 
"To  diffuse  useful  information,  to  further  intellectual  re- 
finement, to  hasten  the  coming  of  the  great  day,  when  the  dawn 
of  general  knowledge  shall  chase  away  the  lazy,  lingering  mists 
of  ignorance  and  error,  is  indeed  a  high  calling." 

MRS.  ERWIN  CRAIGHEAD,  OF  MOBILE,  ALA. 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

In  the  short  five  minutes  allotted  to  me  I  am  asked  to  give  you 
the  personal  touch,  just  a  little  about  my  individual  work  with 
rural  communities  in  organizing  School  Improvement  Associa- 
tions, and  naturally  I  am  going  to  tell  you  about  my  banner 
Association. 

Soon  after  the  committee  appointed  to  this  line  of  work,  by 
the  Alabama  Federation  of  Women's  Clubs,  had  made  a  begin- 
ning I  received  a  letter  which  made  a  simple  direct  appeal  to  my 
sympathies.  It  said  something  like  this:  "Dear  Mrs.  Craig- 
head:  I  see  by  the  papers  that  the  women  are  taking  up  school 
improvement  for  the  benefit  of  our  children.  Thank  God  !  for 
now  something  will  be  done.  *  *  *  Won't  you  please  come 
up  here  and  improve  our  school,  etc.  *  *  *  We  will  give 
you  a  hearty  welcome." 

Of  course  I  went,  first  telling  the  dear  woman  that  it  was  not 
my  mission  to  improve  schools,  but  to  try  to  inspire  members  of 
communities  like  hers  to  unite  for  that  purpose.  This  commun- 
ity was  one  of  farmers  ;  the  center  of  it  was  not  even  a  village, 
but  just  a  store,  wThich  is  also  the  post-office,  with  a  cotton  gin 
near  by.  which  is  also  the  grist  mill. 

I  made  a  visit  to  the  school-house  and  afterwards  talked  to  the 
people  in  the  little  church  near  it  ;  they  listened  most  attentively 
and  before  I  left  I  organized  a  small  School  Improvement  Asso- 
ciation. As  I  was  leaving  the  church  and  found  myself  in  the 
usual  group  of  young  men  and  half-grown  boys  waiting  about 
to  chat  with  the  girls,  I  drove  them  into  a  corner,  so  to  speak, 


132  WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

and  extracted  promises  that  they  would  help  the  ladies  whenever 
called  upon,  especially  with  saw,  hammer  and  nails. 

At  that  time  the  school-house  consisted  of  one  room,  unfur- 
nished, and  unfinished  inside  and  out;  rough  outside  and  un- 
painted;  badly  ventilated;  only  benches,  and  very  few  black- 
boards; and  no  school  conveniences.  The  play  ground  was  right 
in  the  woods,  wild  and  unkept,  and  there  was  no  water  conven- 
ient. In  a  year's  time  the  little  School  Improvement  Associa- 
tion, with  only  eight  active  members,  raised  enough  money  by 
securing  associate  members,  whose  dues  are  one  dollar  per  an- 
num ;  by  giving  little  picnics  and  bazaars,  and  by  securing  dona- 
tions, to  add  an  extra  room  with  wide  open  doors  between;  to 
ceil  the  whole  building;  to  put  in  windows  that  can  be  lowered 
from  the  top,  thus  giving  proper  ventilation;  to  put  blinds  on 
the  outside  and  to  paint  the  building  inside  and  out.  They  also 
put  in  new  improved  patent  desks  enough  for  all  the  school,  also 
a  supply  of  blackboards  and  a  good  stove.  They  have  rented  a 
piano  and  some  of  the  children  take  music  after  school  hours 
from  the  little  school  teacher,  who  is  also  a  musician.  This  is  not 
all — a  good  well  has  been  dug  in  front  of  the  school-house  and 
the  acre  of  ground  has  been  cleared  up,  the  underbrush  cut  out, 
the  pine  trees  have  been  done  away  with,  leaving  the  oaks  to 
grow  and  beautify  the  play  ground.  Three  months  pay  school 
has  been  added  to  the  five  months  free  school,  thus  giving  a  ses- 
sion of  eight  months. 

Last  year  this  Association  was  the  banner  organization  of  the 
State  and  won  the  prize  of  $25  offered  by  the  State  Agricultural 
Fair  Association  to  the  District  Association  making  the  best  re- 
port for  one  year's  work.  The  report  in  full  is  as  follows: 

1.  Name  of  School  Improvement  Association,  China. 

2.  When  organized,  May  21,  1905. 

3.  Number  of  members,  eight. 

4.  Number  of  children  of  school  age  in  district,  32. 

5.  Number  of  children  enrolled  in  school,  32. 

6.  Work  accomplished,  to-wit:  One  building  nicely  furnished 
with  two  departments  connected  by  double  doors;  cost,  $500. 

7.  Play  grounds :  One  acre  nicely  shaded  with  natural  growth. 


MISS  MARY  T.    XA^CE  133 

8.  Furniture  and  equipments:  Sixteen  patent  desks  that  cost 
$50;  5x20  feet  of  blackboard  that  cost  $11.50;  one  heater,  cost 
$15;  teacher's  desk  and  chair,  cost  $3.25;  two  school  bells,  50 
cents;  glass,  comb  and  brush,  $1.00;  bucket,  dipper  and  pan, 
$1.00 ;  and  one  map,  $2.50. 

The  paint,  which  cost  $25,  has  just  been  bought  to  paint  this 
school  building,  which  completes  the  building. 

Number  of  School  Improvement  Associations  organized  by 
the  President  and  Treasurer  of  the  China  School  Association, 
two. 

We  have  visited  four  other  school  districts  that  have  failed  to 
organize  as  they  should,  but  they  are  building  nice  school  build- 
ings. The  treasurer  gave  a  good  talk  at  each  place  on  school 
work,  and  took  up  a  nice  collection  for  each  school-house. 

(Signed)     MRS.  J:  E.  WITHERINGTON,  President. 

You  will  see  by  the  concluding  paragraph  of  the  report  that 
this  little  Association  has  become  imbued  with  the  missionary 
spirit  and,  having  helped  its  own  community,  is  now  anxious  to 
help  others  in  the  county.  The  president  wrote  me  not  long  ago 
that  she  and  the  treasurer  intend  to  organize  all  the  little  dis- 
tricts within  their  reach  if  it  takes  them  a  year  to  do  it.  Don't 
you  think  that  this  good  example  could  be  followed  by  other 
small  communities? 

Miss  MARY  T.  NANCE,  OF  ABBEVILLE,  S.  C. 
REPORT  OP  WOMAN'S  WORK  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 

Madame  President,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

There  are  so  many  reasons  why  1  am  glad  to  be  here  that  1 
can't  enumerate  them  all. 

First,  I  "deem  it  a  great  privilege  to  be  given  the  opportunity 
of  telling  this  body  of  intelligent,  original  thinkers  something 
about  woman's  work  in  South  Carolina  for  the  improvement  of 
rural  schools. 

In  the  second  place,  I  know  that  I  shall  receive  inspiration 
that  will  be  invaluable  to  me  as  a  teacher  and  as  a  woman  truly 


WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

interested  in  the  improvement  of  rural  conditions  in  the  South 
and  more  especially  in  my  own  State. 

During  the  years  that  I  spent  at  Winthrop  College  I  learned 
to  appreciate  North  Carolina  very  much,  for  some  of  our  finest 
students  were  from  your  State.  Then,  too,  our  much  beloved 
President,  Dr.  D.  B.  Johnson,  who  was  the  founder  of  this  insti- 
tution, was  one  of  the  closest  friends  of  your  late  highly  honored 
and  devoted  laborer,  Dr.  Charles  D.  Mclver.  We  as  a  State 
mourn  the  loss  of  this  great,  good  man,  who  if  God  had  seen  fit 
to  spare  him  longer,  would  have  extended  his  influence  so  widely 
that  it  would  have  been  felt  in  the  remotest  rural  districts  of  the 
South.  I  feel  that  I  can  not  pass  to  my  report  until  I  have  paid 
a  heartfelt  tribute  to  Dr.  Mclver.  I  believe  that  he  worked 
gladly,  not  for  fame  or  remuneration,  but  always  and  ever  for  the 
good  of  others.  His  work  was  as  near  perfect  as  he  could  make 
it,  and  what  he  did  for  the  great  cause  of  education  will  be  more 
valuable  to  the  Southland  the  longer  it  lives  and  the  older  it 
grows. 

The  most  important  work  of  any  nation  is  the  education  of  the 
masses,  the  development  of  a  higher  average  citizenship.  Unti1 
every  child  has  had  the  chained  power  within  him  set  free,  until 
every  girl  and  boy  has  been  made  to  know  his  capacity,  devel- 
oped by  consecrated  and  efficient  teachers,  that  nation  has  not 
yet  had  the  Christian  civilization. 

In  the  spring  of  1902,  President  Johnson,  of  Winthrop  Col- 
lege, became  much  interested  in  the  work  of  improving  the 
country  schools  in  South  Carolina.  Believing  that  the  women 
of  the  State  could  do  much  toward  improving  existing  condi- 
tions in  rural  communities,  he  called  to  his  assistance  the  1902 
senior  class  of  Winthrop  College  and  laid  before  them  his  plan 
for  improving  the  buildings  and  grounds  of  the  rural  schools. 
The  class  organized  an  Association,  and  each  member  of  this 
body  pledged  her  support  to  the  improvement  of  rural  schools 
in  South  Carolina.  A  constitution  was  adopted  and  women  all 
over  the  State  were  urged  to  band  themselves  together  in  like 
manner.  Such  was  the  origin  and  organization  of  the  South 
Carolina  Association  for  Rural  School  Improvement.  During 


MISS  MARY  T.   NANCE  135 

the  summer,  the  President  of  the  Association,  together  with  two 
co-workers  visited  many  schools  in  the  State,  urging  upon  the 
parents  and  children  the  importance  of  education,  and  in  many 
coTnmunities  laid  the  matter  so  heavily  on  the  hearts  of  the  peo- 
ple that  they  organized  local  Associations  for  school  improve- 
ment. The  work  has  grown  so  rapidly  and  has  assumed  such 
proportions  that  time  will  not  permit  me  to  tell  details  as  I 
would  like  to  do,  for  I  feel  that  I  must  give  you  a  general  out- 
line of  what  has  been  accomplished  in  our  State. 

An  annual  meeting  is  held  each  year,  and  at  these  meetings 
prominent  club  women,  teachers,  and  many  public  spirited 
women  who  are  interested  along  this  line,  meet  together  and  dis- 
cuss subjects  dealing  with  theory  as  well  as  those  of  a  more 
practical  nature. 

Reports  of  the  conditions  and  needs  of  rural  schools  in  each 
county  are  given  by  the  delegates.  These  are  very  interesting 
and  instructive.  I  think  perhaps  a  few  extracts  from  these  re- 
ports will  give  you  a  clearer  idea  of  conditions  in  various  parts 
of  our  State  than  anything  I  could  say.  The  following  extracts 
are  taken  from  reports  given  by  some  of  the  delegates  at  the 
last  annual  meeting,  which  was  held  at  Columbia  during  the  hol- 
idays: 

1.  "In  Florence  county,  during  the  past  year,  -five  new  school- 
houses  have  been  built,  and  ten  hove  been  remodeled.  Nearly 
all  of  those  which  were  not  already  ceiled  have  been  ceiled  and 
ten  have  been  painted.  *  *  * 

"Patent  desks  have  been  placed  in  nearly  all  those  that  did 
not  already  have  them.  Pianos  have  been  placed  in  two— the 
first  rural  schools  in  the  country  to  buy  pianos.  To-day  nearly 
all  the  school-houses  in  Florence  county  are  very  well  furnished. 
There  has  also  been  great  improvement  in  the  school  grounds. 

"In. two  instances  consolidations  have  been  made.     *     *     * 

"Three  districts  have  voted  special  tax;  one  three  mills;  one 
four;  and  another  six.  *  *  * 

"Four  years  ago,  the  value  of  the  best  school-house  in  the 
country  was  about  $200 ;  to-day,  the  value  of  the  best  is  about 
$6,000,  and  the  average  value  is  about  $250.  *  *  * 


136          WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

"Four  years  ago,  only  ten  or  twelve  school-houses  were  ceiled; 
to-day  nearly  all  of  them  are  ceiled.  *  *  * 

"Four  years  ago,  only  four  school-houses  were  painted;  to-day 
about  twenty-five  are  painted.  *  *  * 

"Four  years  ago,  patent  desks  had  been  placed  in  only  four 
school-houses ;  to-day  they  have  been  placed  in  over  forty.  *  * 

"Four  years  ago,  only  two  districts  had  special  tax:  to-day 
fifteen  have  special  tax." 

2.  "Our  greatest  need  is  a  deeply  rooted  public  sentiment  for 
better  school  houses,   better  equipped  school  rooms  and  more 
beautiful  school  grounds.     In  short,  many  of  our  rural  school 
districts  need  to  learn  that  the  really  beautiful  is  the  really 
useful." 

3.  "At  our  spring  meeting  interesting  papers  were  read  show- 
ing good  results  where  the  Association  has  taken  root.    More  at- 
tention is  being  paid  to  Arbor  Day.     *     *     *     Libraries  are 
coming  into  schools  where  they  had  not  existed,  and  where  they 
were  already  established  new  books  are  being  added.     *     *     * 
One  lady  reported  a  library  for  her  school  and  said  that  she 
had  secured  one  the  year  before  for  a  neighboring  school  before 
she  joined  the  Association.     She  said  the  spirit  of  the  work  was 
"with  her  always.     *     *     *     One  school  under  the  leadership  of 
a  good  director  raised  forty  or  fifty  dollars  toward  school  im- 
provement. ' ' 

4.  "In  our  county,  during  the  past  year,  twelve  school-houses 
have  been  built,  sixteen  schools  have  been  equipped  with  patent 
desks,  fourteen  libraries  have  been  established,  several  of  those 
established  before  have  been  increased,  eight  districts  have  voted 
special  tax  and  several  of  the  school  buildings  have  been  re- 
paired and  painted.     There  are  thirty  school  districts  now  that 
have  the  special  local  school  tax  and  fifty-one  schools  that  now 
ha~ve  the  established  library  and  nine  book  cases.     The  Olivet 
school  building,  which  resulted  from  the  consolidation  of  three 
schools,  was  awarded  one  of  the  $100  prizes  offered  to  the  ten 
schools  making  the  greatest  material  improvement." 

5  "Nearly  every  school  has  a  State  library.  I  know  of  one 
school  where  the  patrons  raised  ten  dollars  and  rather  than  take 


MISS  MARY  T.   !N~A]SrCE  137 

another  ten  from  the  district  raised  this  also,  making  a  sum  of 
twenty  dollars.  The  books  were  read  by  old  and  young." 

6.  "I  asked  the  children  to  bring  pennies  or  eggs  to  buy  some- 
thing for  the  school-room,  and  they  chose  a  blackboard.  Occa- 
sionally I  had  a  contest  of  some  kind,  and  each  child  would  pay 
a  nickel  to  take  part.  Finally,  I  decided  upon  an  entertainment 
to  raise  money  for  a  fence.  Wishing  to  draw  all  the  people  into 
this,  I  chose  'The  Family  Album,'  in  w7hich  the  parts  were 
taken  by  the  people  of  the  community,  from  a  child  of  five  years 
up  to  old  gentlemen  of  seventy.  This  required  only  one  rehear- 
sal.  and  was  a  great  success.  The  people  generously  contributed 
ice-cream  and  cake,  which  we  sold. ' ' 

At  the  last  annual  meeting  the  name  of  the  Association  was 
changed  to  the  School  Improvement  Association  of  South  Caro- 
lina, but  its  aims  and  purposes  remain  the  same.  Just  here  I 
would  like  to  state  that  no  fee  in  dollars  and  cents  is  required 
to  become  a  member  of  our  Association — only  a  pledge  to  do  at 
least  one  thing  for  the  improvement  of  at  least  one  school  some 
tii  ie  during  the  session.  Our  State  organization  is  a  department 
of  the  State  Teachers'  Association  and  the  county  work  of  these 
two  organizations  is  closely  allied.  Through  the  county  Asso- 
ciations many  local  Associations  have  been  formed  and  it  is  with 
these  Associations  that  the  real  work  lies.  The  purpose  of  the 
local  organization  is  to  unite  all  the  people  of  the  community  for 
the  improvement  of  the  school:  (1)  by  placing  in  the  school  fa- 
cilities for  health,  comfort  and  education,  together  with  objects 
of  beauty;  (2)  by  planting  trees,  shrubs  and  flowers  in  the  school 
grounds :  ( )  by  encouraging  the  establishment  of  a  library  in  the 
school;  (4)  by  making  the  school  a  r-enter  for  the  community  for 
furnishing  instructive  amusements. 

Of  course,  discouragements  are  met  with  in  this  work  as  in  all 
other  work  that  one  undertakes;  still  the  difficulties  are  never 
so  great  that  they  cannot  be  overcome  by  a  tactful  person.  The 
secret  is  to  get  the  patrons  interested,  and  the  general  rulo  for 
awakening  this  interest  is  to  make  it  plain  that  the  proposed 
plan  will  result  in  benefit  or  pleasure  to  those  who  are  asked  to 
assist  in  its  execution.  The  teacher  is  supposed  to  be  the  leader 


138  WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

of  the  local  organization  and  the  way  in  which  she  can  interest 
the  patrons  is  to  interest  the  children ;  and  the  way  in  which  she 
can  interest  the  children  is  to  be  herself  interested. 

The  improvements  that  have  been  made  by  the  local  Associa- 
tions range  from  a  cake  of  soap,  a  wash  basin  and  towels,  to  libra- 
ries and  pianos,  new  buildings  and  better  paid  teachers. 

The  county  organizations  have  two  yearly  meetings — one  in 
the  fall  to  plan  for  the  year's  work  and  one  in  the  spring  to  give 
reports  of  the  improvements  that  have  been  made  during  the 
year. 

The  State  Association  offered  last  year  ten  prizes  of  $100  each 
to  the  rural  schools  of  the  State  for  the  most  decided  material 
improvement  made  during  a  given  length  of  time.  Under  ma- 
terial improvements  are  included:  Local  taxation,  consolida- 
tion, new  buildings,  libraries,  interior  decoration,  the  beautifying 
of  yards  and  better  general  equipment.  There  were  many  ap- 
plicants, and  the  executive  committee  found  the  task  of  awarding 
these  prizes  a  difficult  problem,  for  most  creditable  work  had 
been  done  by  all. 

The  trustees  of  Trinity  School,  of  District  No.  27,  in  Claren- 
don county,  raised  $1,500  by  private  subscription  for  the  pur- 
pope  of  building  a  new  school-housa.  The  subscriptions  ranged 
from  25  cents  to  $215,  and  the  astonishing  part  of  what  these 
people  have  done  is  that  there  is  only  $65,000  worth  of  taxable 
property  in  the  district.  This  school  was  awarded  a  prize  of 
$100,  which  was  expended  as  follows : 

Paint   and   painting $76  00 

Interior   building   material 10  00 

Chairs 10  00 

Balance 4  00 

This  prize  was  won  by  a  man ;  so  I  must  give  you  an  example 
of  the  work  accomplished  by  the  women,  and  please  bear  in  mind 
that  out  of  the  ten  prizes  only  two  were  won  by  men.  A  woman 
sent  to  the  Executive  Committee  the  following  statements: 

1.  "The  Wallace  Lodge  School  in  1905-06,  occupied  the  lower 
story  of  a  most  dilapidated  Masonic  Hall,  for  the  use  of  which 
the  payment  of  insurance  was  judged  ample  rent.  It  was  des- 


MISS  MARY  T.    NAXCE  139 

stitute  of  all  modern  improvements,  save  a  few  desks.  It  had  no 
library,  no  maps,  globes,  charts  or  pictures.  In  the  winter  the 
building  was  heated  by  an  open  fireplace,  and  the  broken  win- 
dows and  the  broken  ceiling  offered  us  little  protection  against 
severe  weather. 

2.  ' '  Flint  Hill  School  was  in  such  a  condition  and  so  illy  fur- 
nished that  it  was  sold  for  the  small  sum  of  ten  dollars. 

3.  "Young's  School,  formed  by  the  consolidation  of  the  Wal- 
lace Lodge  School  and  Flint  Hill  School,  occupies  a  commodious 
building,  consisting  of  two  large  rooms  connected  by  folding 
partitions,  and  thus  capable  of  being  made  into  an  auditorium 
for  the  purpose  of  lectures  and  other  exercises.     The  building 
is  (-quipped  with  modern  desks  and  a  library.     We  have  recently 
added  a  handsome  chair  and  table  for  the  teacher ;  a  large  draw- 
ing and  reading  table;  map  of  United  States,  flag  of  United 
States ;  engravings  of  all  of  the  Presidents ;  a  series  of  Longf el- 
low  's   engravings;   some  copies  of  famous  pictures;   charts;   a 
wash  basin  and  towels.     A  donation  has  been  made  to  the  read- 
ing-room of  the  Youth's  Companion  and  The  Little  Folks'  Mag- 
azine.    The  Daily  State  is  used  to  get  up  current  events.     The 
building  has  been  painted  inside  and  outside.     Thus,   from  a 
twenty-five  dollar  school  building  and  grounds,  and  a  dilapidated 
rented  house,  we  now  have  a  well-furnished  modern  building. 

"Value  of  whole  property  at  present,  $1,000.'' 

This  method  of  giving  prizes  has  proven  so  successful  that  the 
State  Association  has  this  year  offered  fifteen  prizes  under  the 
same  regulations.  Five  are  to  consist  of  $100  each  and  ten  of 
$50  each.  Applications  for  these  are  already  being  received. 

Two  bulletins  of  general  interest  to  members  of  the  Associa- 
tion have  been  issued  by  the  Executive  Committee  within  the 
last  year. 

The  Association  has  been  officially  placed  upon  the  roll  of  the 
Federation  of  Women's  Clubs,  and  will  be  represented  at  the 
annual  meeting  in  May  by  two  delegates,  who  are  to  serve  on 
the  programme. 

The  Federation  has  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  School  Im- 
provement Association  its  130  traveling  libraries  and  its  travel- 


140  WOMEX'S    CO-OPEBATlOX    IX   XOJRTH    CAROLINA 

ing  art  gallery.  Mrs.  Eugene  B.  Heard,  of  Middleton,  Ga.,  who 
is  the  General  Superintendent  of  die  Free  Traveling  Library 
System  of  Seaboard  Air  Line,  has  made  the  president  very  cour- 
teous offers  of  the  use  of  her  traveling  libraries,  and  also  offered 
to  furnish  seeds,,  etc.,  for  school  gardens.  It  is  to  this  library 
system  that  Mr.  Carnegie  contributed  so  liberally  when  it  was 
first  put  in  operation. 

Although  I  was  given  no  time  limit,  I  fear  that  I  have  already 
trespassed ;  but  in  conclusion,  I  should  like  to  say  that  I  be- 
lieve a  great  future  awaits  woman's  work  in  every  Southern 
State.  "We  cannot  expect  to  accomplish  everything  in  a  short 
time,  and  although  we  may  meet  with  failures  at  times,  we  must 
"screw  our  courage  to  the  sticking  place"  and  go  forward  with 
the  determination  to  conquer  the  absurd  idea  that  four  bare 
walis  and  a  few  straight-back  benches  constitute  a  place  suitable 
for  any  Southern  boy  or  girl  to  be  kept  seven  or  eight  hours  a 
day.  The  problem  of  improving  the  rural  schools  is  the  great- 
est that  we  have  to  solve  to-day.  .  The  foundation  of  education 
of  the  majority  of  our  people  is  laid  in  the  rural  schools.  This 
fact  alone  will  bring  us  to  the  conclusion  that  to  give  the  chil- 
dren in  the  rural  schools  better  advantages  is  a  necessity.  The 
members  of  the  School  Improvement  Association  of  South  Caro- 
lina are  working  with  one  grand  aim,  to  give  the  children  in  the 
country  communities  better  advantages  in  the  way  of  buildings 
and  grounds,  thus  brightening  their  environment  and  developing 
in  their  young  hearts  a  love  for  the  beautiful. 

"The  prosperity  of  the  State  does  not  depend  upon  the 
amount  of  education  which  some  of  the  people  have,  but  upon 
the  education  possessed  by  all  the  people  in  the  State. " 

To  the  Conference  I  bring  greetings  and  good  wishes  from  the 
School  Improvement  Association  of  South  Carolina.  It  is  our 
widi  that  the  Conference  may  live  long  and  shed  its  rays  of  good 
work  into  every  part  of  our  Southland. 


MRS.   A.   A.   MC   KISSICK  141 

MRS.  A.  A.  McKissicx, 
President  of  the  South  Carolina  Federation  of  Women's  Clubs. 

The  educational  work  of  the  South  Carolina  Federation  of 
Women's  Clubs  is  carried  on  through  the  Kindergarten,  Trav- 
eling Library  and  Educational  Departments,  and  ranges  in  scope 
from  the  nine  free,  and  the  two  pay  kindergartens  supported 
by  the  affiliated  Clubs  and  Associations,  to  the  Training  School 
for  Kindergartners,  under  the  control  of  the  South  Carolina 
Kindergarten  Association,  and  the  Scholarships  (owned  by  the 
Federation)  in  the  various  educational  institutions  in  the  State. 
We  now  have  134  well  cased  traveling  libraries,  which  are  in 
great  demand  among  our  rural  schools  and  are  given  free  carriage 
by  the  railroads  of  the  State.  By  the  affiliation  of  the  School 
Improvement  Association  with  the  Federation,  a  larger  field 
of  usefulness  is  opened  to  the  Club  women,  but  the  greatest 
good  will  be  the  personal  touch  of  teachers  with  the  Club 
women,  affording  a  needed  opportunity  of  bringing  about 
a  closer  union  between  parents  and  teachers.  The  Federation 
as  a  whole  takes  an  active  interest  in  all  educational  matters, 
working  for  compulsory  education,  manual  training  in  the  pub- 
lic schools,  better  teachers,  better  salaries  for  them  and  better 
equipment  for  the  public  schools. 

Under  the  direction  of  our  Civic  Department,  many  Clubs, 
Leagues  and  Associations  are  working  with  the  public  school 
authorities  for  the  improvement  of  the  school  grounds,  or  for 
the  decoration  of  the  interiors  of  the  school  buildings. 

Many  of  the  Clubs  supply  current  reading  matter,  such  as 
papers,  magazines,  etc.,  for  the  "Reading  Table"  of  the 
country  schools;  and  to  their  credit  be  it  said  that  their  con- 
tributions are  not  confined  to  any  one  school,  but  some  of  the 
Clubs  average  twenty-five  or  more  schools  per  month. 

These  are  some  of  the  material  benefits  that  come  from  the 
work  of  our  State  Federation,  but  no  one  can  say  where  its 
influence  for  good  for  the  uplifting  of  our  State  shall  end. 


142  WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

MRS.  WALTER  B.  HILL,  OF  ATHENS,  GA. 

REPORT  OF  THE  GEORGIA  SCHOOL  IMPROVEMENT  CLUB. 
HISTORY. 

At  a  meeting  held  in  the  office  of  Governor  Joseph  M.  Terrell, 
at  Atlanta,  in  the  spring  of  1904,  an  educational  committee  to 
work  in  the  interest  of  education  in  the  State  was  appointed 
as  follows:  Chancellor  Walter  B.  Hill,  Hon.  Hoke  Smith,  Ex- 
Gov.  Northen,  Bishop  W.  A.  Candler,  State  Superintendent 
W.  B.  Merritt,  Superintendent  M.  L.  Duggan. 

This  committee  issued  an  address  to  the  State,  in  which, 
among  other  things,  they  said,  "Realizing  the  strong  devotion 
of  the  women  of  the  State  to  the  welfare  of  the  children,  we 
appeal  to  them  to  organize  School  Improvement  Clubs  in  every 
county  and  locality."  In  July,  1904,  a  Georgia  Educational 
Conference  was  held  at  Athens,  at  which  the  following  resolu- 
tion was  adopted:  "We  appeal  to  the  women  of  Georgia  to 
organize  themselves  into  School  Improvement  Clubs,  and  thus  to 
bring  to  bear  in  behalf  of  educational  interests,  and  of  school 
buildings,  those  fine  qualities  and  powers  of  womanhood  which 
make  them  so  indispensable  to  the  churches  of  the  land." 

STATE  CLUB  ORGANIZED. 

In  order  to  carry  out  the  foregoing  objects,  a  State  organiza- 
tion was  effected  in  August,  1904,  during  the  meeting  of  the 
University  Summer  School  at  Athens.  A  constitution  was 
adopted  in  which  the  foregoing  resolutions  were  quoted  as  the 
preamble.  The  constitution  is  as  follows: 

"Its  special  object  is  to  enlist  the  women  of  every  community 
in  the  State  to  organize  themselves  into  local  School  Improve- 
ment Clubs,  having  in  view  the  improvement  of  school  buildings, 
and  the  introduction  of  pictures  and  libraries,  the  beautifying 
of  the  grounds,  the  addition  of  school  gardens,  and  all  the 
facilities  for  making  the  school  noat,  clean  and  attractive. 


MRS.    WALTEK   B.    HILL 


143 


"The  officers  of  the  State  club  shall  be  a  president,  vice- 
president,  secretary,  treasurer  and  executive  committee,  who 
shall  perform  the  duties  usually  incident  to  such  offices.  They 
shall  hold  office  for  a  term  of  one  year.  Annual  meetings  of  the 
State  club  shall  be  held  in  connection  with  the  University  Sum- 
mer School.  To  these  all  local  clubs  are  invited  to  send  repre- 
sentatives and  to  make  reports  of  betterments  that  have  been 
made  in  school  buildings  and  premises. 

"The  management  of  the  affairs  of  the  State  club  shall  be 
vested  in  the  executive  committee,  composed  of  the  officers 
above  named,  the  president  of  the  Summer  School  and  the  State 
School  Superintendent. ' ' 

The  working  machinery  of  the  School  Improvement  Clubs  has 
been  planned  to  be  of  the  simplest  kind.  There  is  very  little 
constitution,  and  no  dues,  unless  voted  by  a  local  society.  There 
are  generally  committees  appointed  for  membership  and  for 
public  meetings,  a  House  and  Grounds  Committee,  a  committee 
for  social  occasions,  one  for  libraries,  and  one  General  Utility 
Committee,  which  the  good  wife  of  a  Baptist  minister  declares 
to  be  the  ' '  chink-filler, ' '  since  the*  members  of  this  are  to  do 
•everything  left  undone  by  the  other  committee's. 

In  the  beginning,  the  work  of  this  School  Improvement  Club 
was  confined  to  the  prepartion  of  a  bulletin,  which,  published 
with  illustrations,  set  forth  the  plan  and  purpose  of  the  organiza- 
tion. It  included  also  the  sending  of  circular  letters  to  the 
County  School  Commissioners,  asking  them  to  appoint  three 
or  more  competent  women  who  would  be  willing  to  undertake 
the  work  of  county  and  district  organization  and  promote  the 
formation  of  local  School  Clubs.  From  the  first,  a  very  lively 
interest  has  been  shown,  and  the  correspondence  from  all  parts 
of  the  State  has  had  a  steady  growth. 

In  addition  to  our  first  bulletin,  in  1904,  we  have  since  added 
to  our  circulative  literature:  (1906)  A  blank  report  form,  for 
use  of  clubs  and  teachers;  (Nov.  1906)  "Agricultural  Gardens, 
for  Public  Schools";  (May,  1907)  "Improvement  of  School 
Grounds. ' ' 

In  many  of  the  counties,  our  Commissioners  have  been  the 
best,  most  loyal,  and  appreciative  of  our  many  friends,  and 


144-          WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

they  have  accomplished  some  fine  work  in  interesting  their 
counties  in  this  plan  for  awakening  the  general  enthusiasm  of 
the  people  in  the  betterment  of  the  schools. 

Since  the  Lexington  Conference  of  last  year  I  have  given 
most  of  my  time  and  effort  to  the  advancement  and  development 
of  this  work,  with  gratifying  results.  The  responses  from  all 
parts  of  the  State  show  a  steady  increase  of  interest.  In  many 
places  the  teachers  have  taken  the  short  cut,  getting  the  club 
work  started  among  the  scholars  and  hoping  through  them  to  in- 
terest the  parents.  These  school  clubs  have  done  very  fine  work, 
and  could  be  made  still  more  valuable  as  auxiliary  to,  and  under 
the  leadership  of  grown-up  clubs. 

As  the  result  of  the  campaign,  since  last  summer,  we  have 
the  names  of  chairmen  of  county  committees  in  seventy-six 
counties,  with  ninety-seven  local  clubs;  some  of  these  dating 
their  organization  several  years  back,  although  the  majority  of 
them  began  active  work  in  1906  and  1907. 

Numerous  clubs  have  begun  work  without  making  any  report, 
and  in  consequence  we  do  not  at  present  know  the  exact  number 
of  clubs. 

Since  the  betterment  of  the  conditions  of  our  school-houses 
and  grounds  must  represent  an  evolution  and  growth  within 
individual  communities,  not  a  revolution  working  from  without, 
one  factor  essential  for  the  steady  growth  and  perfection  of  this 
plan  for  school  improvement  is  the  sympathetic  co-operatkm 
of  the  County  School  Commissioners.  Of  all  the  active  forces 
for  educational  work  in  our  State,  these  county  officials  come 
closest  to  the  daily  lives  of  our  people  living  in  the  small  towns 
and  in  the  country.  They  know  the  needs  of  their  own  county 
people;  they  understand  more  thoroughly  the  conditions  under 
which  they  live,  and  they  are  thus  more  keenly  in  sympathy, 
perhaps,  with  their  ambitions,  purposes,  wishes,  and  failings 
than  any  others  can  be. 

The  second  essential  factor  is  the  willingness  of  earnest,  com- 
petent, "all-round  good"  women  in  the  small  towns  and  out- 
lying country  sections,  to  undertake  such  a  labor  of  unselfish 
love,  looking  not  only  to  the  betterment  of  the  school-houses, 
grounds,  teachers,  and  teaching,  but  through  these  to  the  gradual 


MRS.    WALTER   15.    HILL  145 

building  up  of  a  finer  social  spirit,  a  community  of  interest, 
among  the  patrons  of  our  common  school. 

These  good  women,  whether  college  graduates  or  taught  at 
home,  must  have  added  to  willingness  and  goodness  that  ex- 
quisite, spiritual  essence,  enthusiasm,  without  which  nothing 
good  or  great  was  ever  achieved. 

To  have  permanent  and  steady  growth  of  public  sentiment, 
to  succeed  in  a  healthy  development  of  interest  rather  than  a 
sudden,  sporadic  growth,  which,  like  Jonah's  gourd,  will  flour- 
ish and  as  quickly  fade,  the  real  workers  for  school  improve- 
ment, for  the  uplifting  of  school  standards  and  the  changing 
of  community  thought,  must  be  found  in  the  people  themselves 
of  each  county  and  district.  Organizers  and  lecturers  may  be 
invited;  they  can  do  much  good.  They  do  inspire  enthusiasm 
and  they  may  charm  by  their  eloquence— but  when  they  are 
done  with  their  speaking,  they  straightway  depart,  and  soon 
forget  what  manner  of  folk  we  are.  The  real  workers  are  the 
home  folks  who  stay,  after  the  eloquent  and  inspiring  vocal 
pyrotechnics  have  cleared  the  atmosphere  and  have  given  a  clear- 
er view  of  duties  from  the  wonderful  pictures  of  what  others 
are  doing.  They  have  to  stay  by*  the  stuff,  whether  they  want 
to  or  not.  Those  who  love  their  children  and  are  putting  their 
lives  into  their  welfare,  and  who  also  love  the  neighbor's  child- 
ren (if  not  the  neighbor  himself),  are  the  ones  who  must  put  the 
shoulder  to  the  wheel,  and  push  along  the  lively  and  growing 
bundle  of  neighborhood  aspirations  and  ambitions,  until  it 
be  made  into  a  compact  and  orderly  shape  for  the  betterment 
of  their  own  school,  their  own  school  library,  their  own  school 
grounds,  and  individually  their  own  selves. 

Emerson  says:  "A  man  is  a  bunch  of  relations,  a  knot  of 
roots,  whose  flower  and  fruitage  is  the  world."  He  might  havi 
added  to  this,  the  thought  that  very  often  the  finest  flower  and 
fruitage  Have  been  from  the  deepest  roots,  which  were  never 
transplanted  for  finer  leafage  far  from  the  smoke  of  the  home- 
stead chimney. 

It  is  a  good  thing  for  country  people  and  local  leaders  to 
learn  what  people  in  other  sections  are  doing.  Now  and  then 
a  trip  from  home  to  some  other  county  or  larger  town  for  the  pur- 


146  WOMEN'S  CO-OPEBATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

pose  of  looking  into  conditions  existing  elsewhere  and  comparing 
these  with  the  home  conditions,  has  had  very  valuable  effect 
in  waking  up  individual  and  community  interest  in  the  solv- 
ing of  problems  at  home.  The  rolling  stone,  when  it  can  be 
induced  to  return,  sometimes  furnishes  to  the  home  world  a 
certain  element  only  obtained  by  rubbing  against  others  of 
like  nature. 

You  remember  the  answer  of  the  old  darky  too  much  inclined  to 
roam.  His  master  remonstrating,  said,  "Sam,  don't  you  know 
a  rolling  stone  gathers  no  moss?"  "No,  Marse  Jule,  but  it 
gadders  polish." 

But  neither  the  organizers,  visitors,  news  from  abroad,  nor 
the  return  of  the  rolling  stone,  however  inspiring  in  them- 
selves, can  take  the  place  of  a  steady,  determined  purpose  on  the 
part  of  our  stay-at-home,  reliable  folks,  to  concentrate  their 
unselfish  interests  on  the  betterment  of  the  school-houses,  and 
on  the  awakening  of  public  sentiment  to  the  needs  of  our  ruraJ 
schools. 

The  ambition  of  this  club  is  directed  toward  helping  to  build 
up  a  better  understanding  of  our  country  people  as  to  what 
constitutes  the  finest  independence,  and  what  makes  for  the 
most  satisfactory  conditions  of  community  life. 

The  aim  of  each  local  club  is  to  have  a  well-built  school- 
house,  thoroughly  equipped  with  the  best  appointments,  and 
with  carefully  planned  grounds  or  garden.  Set  in  the  midst 
of  the  community  life  it  should  be  a  source  of  common  inter- 
est to  the  people  living  there,  a  vitalized  centre  for  social,  moral, 
and  intellectual  life.  "When  this  is  accomplished,  good  teachers 
and  full  length  of  school  terms  will  naturally  follow. 

As  the  result  of  the  untiring  work  of  these  clubs  throughout 
Georgia,  we  hope  within  a  very  short  time  to  see  every  boy  and 
girl  who  lives  in  the  country  receiving  equally  as  good  and 
equally  as  much  school  life  as  the  pupils  of  city  schools. 

In  building  up  the  school  interests  we  hope  and  plan  to  build 
also  for  a  finer,  broader,  more  sympathetic  living  for  our  rural 
population,  that  whether  our  country  children  grow  up  to  be 
farmers  or  leave  home  for  other  places,  they  will  be  representa- 


MRS.    M.   E.   LIPSCOMB  1-tT 

live  of  the  best  and  truest  growth  our  State  can  produce- 
honest,  educated,  godly  men  and  women. 

MRS.  M.  E.  LIPSCOMB, 
President  of  the  Georgia  Federation  of  Women's  Clubs. 

REPORT   OF  EDUCATIONAL   WORK  DONE  BY   THE  WOMEN  *S  CLUBS   OF 

GEORGIA. 

Ten  years  ago  the  Georgia  Federation  of  Women's  Clubs  was 
organized  in  Atlanta.  At  the  first,  education  was  adopted  as 
its  special  work.  Its  interest  extended  from  the  Kindergarten  to 
the  University,  but  very  soon  a  large  share  of  this  interest  was 
directed  to  the  problem  of  the  rural  school.  A  close  connection 
between  the  Federation  and  the  rural  school  was  established  by 
the  large  traveling  library  work  which  was  early  initiated. 
In  taking  books  and  pictures  to  the  country  people  we  soon 
found  that  they  were  not  possessed  of  much  schooling  of  any 
kind  and  that  such  as  they  had  was  not  calculated  to  help 
them  in  their  communities.  T*hus  began  the  experiment  of  the 
Georgia  Federation  in  the  model  rural  school.  At  the  suggestion 
of  Prof.  Branson,  who  was  among  the  first  contributors  to  the 
fund,  a  model  school  was  established  at  Danielsville  in  connec- 
tion with  the  country  school.  Eight  hundred  dollars  was  raised 
by  the  Federation  and  that  amount,  together  with  that  raised 
by  the  county,  went  into  this  work.  There  were  three  things 
the  Federation  insisted  on:— garden  and  village  improvement, 
library  work,  and,  above  all,  industrial  training.  Last  year,  when 
interest  in  that  work  flagged,  help  was  immediately  withdrawn. 
This  year,  industrial  training  has  been  re-introduced  and  again 
the  Federation  has  granted  help.  Five  hundred  books  have 
been  sent  as  a  permanent  library  and  financial  aid  has  been 
added  for  the  salary  of  the  industrial  teacher.  Several  years 
ago  it  was  to  this  school  that  Mr.  Peabody  sent  aid  by  a  liberal 
contribution  for  a  piano. 

The  next  work  of  the  Federation  in  the  line  of  industrial 
education  was  the  establishment  of  the  Floyd  County  School 


148  WOMEN'S  CO-OPERATION  ix  NORTH  CAROLINA 

in  Walters  District.  This  is,  perhaps,  the  most  isolated  and 
inaccessible  of  all  the  schools  maintained  by  the  Federation. 
To  the  country  school  has  been  added  a  workshop,  a  kitchen, 
and  a  large,  eight-room  dormitory.  In  this  dormitory  the  teach- 
ers live,  together  with  some  of  the  children  whose  homes  are 
in  a  remote  part  of  the  district.  The  local  club  at  Rome  has  the 
care  of  this  school  and  contributes  most  of  the  money  for  its 
support.  It  has  received  generous  help  from  the  Federation 
and  also  from  the  Southern  Education  Board. 

The  Cass  Station  Model  School  was  a  gift  from  the  Massa- 
chusetts Club  women  to  the  Georgia  Federation.  When  Massa- 
chusetts heard  of  the  zeal  with  which  the  Clubs  were  working  to 
create  a  sentiment  in  favor  of  the  passage  of  thje  Child  Labor 
Law,  she  sent  this  message:  "What  can  we  do  to  help  you  in 
your  work?"  Mrs.  Granger,  the  president,  returned  this  an- 
swer: "Help  us  in  our  rural  schools."  Forthwith  there  came 
a  check  of  one  thousand  dollars  for  the  establishment  of  an  in- 
dustrial department  of  education  at  Cass  Station,  and  each 
year  they  have  sent  a  check  to  cover  the  salary  of  that  teacher. 
Last  week  the  Club  women  secured  a  piano  for  that  school. 
These  three  industrial  schools  are  the  special  work  of  the  Geor- 
gia Federation. 

The  Club  women  are  now  at  work  to  establish  a  fourth  in- 
dustrial school  at  Tallulah  Falls,  the  most  beautiful  and  ro- 
mantic section  in  the  State,  but  the  most  needy.  Five  acres  of 
beautiful  land  have  been  contributed;  $581.48  is  in  bank  for 
this  purpose,  five  hundred  more  in  subscriptions,  and  in  addi- 
tion there  are  promises  of  help  in  lumber  and  building  material. 
Mr.  Samuel  Spencer  sent  a  check  of  $100  to  this  fund  and 
asked  that  it  might  be  credited  to  his  wife.  The  plans  are  now 
in  the  hands  of  a  contractor.  The  Club  work  is  to  establish 
these  schools  wherever  they  are  needed,  to  equip  them  with  good 
libraries  and  an  industrial  department,  and  to  insist  on  the 
work  being  properly  done. 

The  Daughters  of  the  Confederacy,  nearly  of  all  them  Club 
women,  and  in  some  places  federated  with  us,  are  working  ^ide 
by  side  with  the  Federation  in  industrial  education.  Instead 
of  raising  monuments  of  cold  marble  to  their  illustrious  dead, 


MRS.    M.    E.    LIPSCOMli  149 

they  are  building  schools  for  the  living.  By  them  was  built 
the  Winnie  Davis  Memorial  Dormitory  at  Ihe  State  Normal  at 
a  cost  of  between  twenty  and  thirty  thousand  dollars.  The 
Southern  Education  Board  gave  generously  to  this  work,  as 
also  did  the  State,  influenced  by  sentiment  created  by  the  women. 

The  women  of  the  State  have  furnished  all  the  bed-rooms  as 
memorials.  The  Children  of  the  Confederacy  have  furnished 
the  parlors  and  halls  and  the  money  for  the  stone  steps.  The 
fact  that  the  State  Normal  School  at  Athens  has  industrial 
education  is  directly  due  to  the  women's  demand  for  it  as  a 
condition  of  locating  the  Winnie  Davis  Memorial  there  instead 
of  at  Milledgeville.  The  Model  Rural  School  movement  has 
three  functions  which  commend  it  to  us  as  the  best  formulated 
plan  we  could  adopt  for  the  maintenance  and  success  of  such 
work: 

1st.  It  co-operates  with  the  already  established  county 
schools. 

2nd.  It  demands  financial  aid  from  the  community,  thus  help- 
ing self-help. 

3d.  It  guarantees  two  important  things:  (a)  That  the  indus- 
trial instruction  shall  be  the  kind  that  instructs,  because  it  is 
supervised  by  experts  through  the  Federation,  (b)  It  guaran- 
tees that  funds  invested  shall  be  used  to  the  best  advantage, 
because  they  pass  through  responsible  and  conscientious  hands. 

In  1901  there  was  no  manual  training  in  the  county  schools 
of  Georgia.  When  two  scholarships  were  presented  to  the  Fed- 
eration by  great  Northern  Training  Schools.  Miss  Isabel  Thurs- 
by  and  Miss  Emily  Wilburn  were  sent  to  Oread  Institute  and 
Columbia  University  to  take  advantage  of  this  offer  for  manutu 
training  and  domestic  science.  Their  expenses  were  paid  by 
the  Federation.  After  the  completion  of  their  studies  they  re- 
turned to  Georgia  to  give  their  services  wherever  the  Federation 
might  place  them.  Thus  the  day  of  training  the  hand  along 
with  the  head  came  to  the  rural  schools  in  large  measure  through 
the  Club  women.  Since  1902  the  women  have  supported  sixty 
scholarships  at  the  State  Normal  School  at  a  cost  of  over  three 
thousand  dollars.  One  of  the  leading  Club  women  workers  to 
have  this  Winnie  Davis  Memorial  placed  at  Athens  was  a  Massa- 


150  WOMAN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

chusetts  woman.  Her  work  and  the  gift  of  Massachusetts  women 
to  the  Cass  Station  School  show  the  fraternal  spirit  which  ex- 
ists between  Club  women  all  over  these  United  States.  The 
General  Federation  now  numbers  over  one-half  million  of  work- 
ers. Education  is  a  common  ground  on  which  we  can  all  come 
together.  The  Women's  Club  and  the  Daughters  of  the  Con- 
federacy are  also  working  side  by  side  for  the  Rabun  Gap 
School.  Both  organizations  have  contributed  largely  to  tbis 
school.  The  Daughters  are  now  making  a  handsome  donation 
to  the  school  in  shape  of  a  dormitory.  It  is  to  cost  three  thous- 
and dollars,  and  the  plans  are  now  in  the  hands  of  the  contrac- 
tor. This  dormitory  is  to  be  a  monument  to  that  brave  and 
daring  soldier,  Col.  Francis  A.  Bartow,  and  is  to  bear  his  name. 

I  have  not  time  to  tell  of  the  free  night  schools  and  the  free 
kindergartens  that  the  Club  women  have  established  in  the 
State.  I  will  only  speak  of  the  work  in  Atlanta  and  Athens,  of 
which  I  know.  The  Kindergarten  Association  in  Atlanta  has 
six  successful  kindergartens,  with  over  five  hundred  children 
in  attendance.  The  teachers  have  made  twelve  hundred  visits 
to  the  homes  of  these  children  and  have  distributed  eight  hun- 
dred and  fifty  garments.  In  Athens  we  have  two  kindergartens 
established  by  the  women  in  the  factory  districts.  In  East 
Athens  the  kindergarten  has,  until  recently,  been  supported 
entirely  by  the  Club.  The  women  presented  the  work  to  the  town 
and  it  has  been  incorporated  in  the  public  school  system.  The 
same  thing  has  been  done  with  the  West  Athens  Kindergarten. 

The  time  limit  forces  me  to  leave  out  the  splendid  work  done 
by  the  Clubs  in  traveling  and  permanent  libraries.  I  will  close 
the  report  by  giving  the  programme  of  work  for  the  year  1907- 
1908,  as  adopted  by  the  Executive  Board  at  the  last  meeting. 

1st.  Library  Day,"  to  be  observed  on  February  22d.  This  has 
passed,  and  over  one  thousand  books  were  added  to  the 
libraries. 

2d.  Barbecue  Day,  to  be  observed  on  April  20th  each  year, 
the  proceeds  to  be  devoted  to  industrial  education. 

3rd.  A  Christmas  Bazaar,  the  proceeds  to  be  given  to  indus- 
trial education. 


MKS.    EUGENE   B.    HEARD  151 

4th.  The  Enforcement  of  the  Child  Labor  Law,  and  the  pas- 
sage of  a  bill  for  the  Registration  of  Births. 
5th.  A  Compulsory  Education  Bill. 

MBS.  EUGENE  B.  HEARD,  OF  MIDDLETON,  GA. 

REPORT  OF  THE  SEABOARD  AIR  LINE  RAILWAY'S  FREE  TRAVELING 

LIBRARY  SYSTEM  FOR  1906,  INCLUDING  ITS  MOST  IMPORTANT 

SERIES,  THE  ANDREW  CARNEGIE  SERIES  AND  THE  WILLIAM 

M'KINLEY  MEMORIAL  SERIES. 

The  phenomenal  success  and  development  of  the  S.  A.  L. 
Free  Traveling  Library  system  is  due  to  the  correlation  of  a 
number  of  educational  forces— namely,  the  Georgia  Federation 
of  Women's  Clubs,  the  Departments  of  Education  of  the  six 
States  through  which  the  railway  extends — Virginia,  North 
Carolina,  South  Carolina,  Georgia,  Florida,  and  Alabama— the 
faithful  co-operation  of  the  teachers  of  these  States,  and  the 
financial  aid  given  by  Mr.  Andrew  Carnegie  and  other  indi- 
viduals interested  in  the  greater  education  in  the  South. 

The  Seaboard  Air  Line  Free"  Traveling  Library  system  was 
established  in  November,  1898.  Since  then  thousands  of  schools 
have  made  permanent  improvements  for  their  school-houses 
and  grounds.  The  libraries  are  offered  as  inducements  for 
these  improvements. 

Five  hundred  schools  have  established  permanent  libraries. 

In  the  past  two  years  fifty-five  school  gardens  have  been  es- 
tablished. These  gardens  have  been  furnished  with  several  hun- 
dred dollars'  worth  of  seeds,  bulbs  and  plants  through  this 
library  system. 

Through  the  school  libraries  an  immense  amount  of  literature 
on  school  gardens  and  related  topics  has  been  distributed. 

Fifty  rural  communities,  helped  by  the  community  libraries, 
have  established  village  Improvement  Clubs. 

Hundreds  of  pamphlets  on  civic  improvement  have  been 
furnished  to  these  clubs  through  the  community  libraries. 

Number  of  books  purchased  with  Carnegie  Fund  in  1906, 
250 ;  number  of  books  donated  by  publishers  and  individuals 


152  WOMAN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

to  the  William  McKinley  Memorial  series  in  1906,  1,000;  total 
number  of  books  in  circulation  in  school  libraries,  5,000. 

These  books  are  sent  from  headquarters  to  schools  at  the 
beginning  of  every  quarter  of  the  school  year,  in  cases  pre- 
pared for  that  purpose,  and  are  returned  at  the  end  of  the 
quarter  to  the  central  office  to  be  examined,  checked  and  mended 
by  the  secretary  of  the  system. 

During  the  school  year  each  book  is  read  on  an  average  of 
eight  times,  making  a  total  circulation  of  40,000.  Number  of 
books  in  circulation  through  the  community  libraries,  2,500; 
total  number  of  books  in  circulation  in  both  school  and  com- 
munity libraries,  7,500.  Magazines  and  periodicals  distributed 
through  school  libraries,  mostly  St.  Nicholas  and  Youth's  Com- 
panion 1,900;  magazines,  etc.,  to  factory  children  and  railroad 
employees,  800 ;  magazines,  etc.,  to  local  white  families,  500 ; 
magazines,  etc.,  to  negro  schools  and  families.  1,800;  total  num- 
ber magazines  and  periodicals  distributed,  5.000. 

Miss  ELEANOR  RIGGS, 
Corresponding  Secretary  New  Orleans  Public  School  Alliance. 

Louisiana  sends  greetings,  and  deems  it  a  privilege  to  be  in- 
vited to  take  part  in  the  proceedings  of  this  meeting. 

The  work  of  co-operation  of  home  and  school  in  Louisiana 
has  been  the  greatest  educational  movement  in  the  State.  A 
deeper,  more  widespread  interest  in  general  school  work  has 
been  stimulated  through  this  factor  than  through  any  other 
medium.  Throughout  the  State  communities  are  awakening  to 
the  fact  that  the  public  school  is  the  direct  property  of  the 
people,  and  that  as  such  it  needs  the  personal  interest  of  every 
man  and  woman  in  the  district.  One  of  the  most  significant 
phases  of  this  movement  has  been  the  willingness  on  the  part 
of  the  public  to  work  when  they  found  out  what  they  were  to 
do.  We  are  glad  to  report  that  every  parish  in  the  State  has 
individual  organizations  for  the  betterment  of  school  conditions. 
Many  of  these  associations  have  been  directly  influential  in 
having  special  taxes  voted  for  school  buildings  and  equipment. 
This  represents,  perhaps,  the  most  permanent  work. 


MISS   ELEANOR   RIGGS 


153 


WORK  IN  NEW  ORLEANS. 

More  than  sixteen  years  ago  a  movement  in  the  interest  of 
co-operation  of  home  and  school  was  begun  in  the  kindergarten 
department  of  one  of  the  public  schools  of  this  city.  The  origi- 
nal intent  was  to  bring  the  mothers  of  the  kindergarten  pupils 
into  closer  touch  with  the  aims  and  ideals  of  this  phase  of 
primary  education  and  to  invite  co-operation  in  spreading  in- 
terest in  child  study.  So  satisfactory  were  these  meetings  that 
they  grew  in  popularity,  and  in  a  few  years  became  a  prominent 
factor  of  the  kindergarten  plan. 

The  influence  of  these  Clubs  was  subtle  in  its  far-reaching 
and  permanent  value.  Its  potentiality  was  secured  largely  in 
this  way.  Through  the  courtesy  of  the  kindergarten  teachers, 
the  entire  faculty  of  the  school  was  invited  to  attend  these 
meetings,  which  were  informal  and  social  in  character,  and 
thereby  some  of  the  mothers  in  the  school  district  were  brought 
into  contact  with  all  the  teachers,  and  learned  to  know  not 
only  the  guardian  of  the  kindergarten  tot,  but  also  the  in- 
structor of  the  boy  in  the  third  grade,  etc.  Thus  many  cordial 
acquaintanceships  sprang  up  which  extended  beyond  the  limits  of 
the  original  plan.  Through  the  practical,  available  help  of 
these  Clubs,  the  entire  corps  learned  to  appreciate  the  value 
of  this  assistance  from  without,  and  sentiment  in  favor  of  co- 
operation of  home  and  school  grew. 

As  the  kindergarten  class  graduated  into  the  higher  school, 
the  mothers  of  this  department  went  forward  into  the  co- 
operative organization  of  t.Ve  general  school.  Because  of  the 
personal  character  of  the  Kindergarten  Club,  most  of  the  schools 
keep  this  separate,  but  both  Clubs  are  sustained  in  happy  rela- 
tion to  each  other,  and  unite  from  time  to  time  in  carrying 
forward  certain  kinds  of  work.  In  schools  where  there  is  no 
kindergarten  department,  Co-operative  Clubs  have  been  carried 
on  with  most  satisfactory  results.  The  organization  of  many 
of  these  is  due  largely  to  the  work  of  the  Public  School  Al- 
liance in  its  efforts  for  better  school  conditions.  It  is  most 
gratifying  to  note  that  these  associations  number  upwards  of 


154          WOMAN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

forty  active  Clubs,  whose  influence  is  felt  in  every  district  of 
New  Orleans. 

The  work  of  these  Clubs  has  been  varied  and  interesting,  in- 
cluding features  as  follows: 

Admirable  plans  for  Christmas  and  Easter  entertainments 
have  been  suggested  and  executed,  with  the  result  of  adding 
to  the  interest  and  attractiveness  of  a  school  and  increasing 
its  attendance.  Entertainments  for  the  benefit  of  school  li- 
braries have  been  undertaken  and  a  return  of  several  hundred 
dollars  given  to  the  advancement  of  local  circulating  libraries; 
sometimes  as  much  as  seven  hundred  dollars  being  realized  in 
one  evening  for  this  work. 

To-day  the  school  library  is  one  of  the  most  important  ad- 
juncts of  our  educational  system.  It  is  most  gratifying  to 
learn  that  the  total  number  of  volumes  in  the  public  schools 
amounts  to  fifty  thousand.  The  members  of  one  of  the  Co- 
operative Clubs  decided  last  summer  to  take  care  of  the  library 
during  the  vacation  months,  so  that  the  books  might  be  kept 
in  circulation  the  entire  year.  This  plan  worked  with  ad- 
mirable success.  Recently  an  entertainment  was  given  by  a 
•Co-operative  Club  in  Algiers,  and  the  sum  of  two  hundred  dol- 
lars was  realized  to  carry  out  the  plan  of  improving  six  lots  of 
ground  that  constitute  the  school  site.  The  membership  dues 
of  many  of  these  organizations  have  been  used  in  a  number  of 
instances  for  improving  school  grounds  by  attractive  garden 
plots.  In  one  section  of  the  city  the  Co-operative  Club  raised 
sufficient  funds  to  purchase  a  lot  adjoining  the  school  grounds, 
thus  extending  the  playground.  Several  Clubs  have  constituted 
themselves  guardians  of  health  by  placing  sanitary  water-closets 
in  their  respective  schools  for  the  benefit  of  the  pupils.  The 
work  of  school-room  decoration  has  also  been  an  uplifting  in- 
fluence on  the  part  of  these  Clubs. 

While  the  work  along  the  lines  of  material  welfare  has  betn 
most  acceptable  and  valuable,  perhaps  the  7nost  significant  work 
has  been  developed  through  efforts  to  make  the  school  a  unit 
of  community  value.  That  is,  not  merely  shall  the  community 
help  the  school,  but  the  school  shall  help  the  community.  To 
the  end  of  fulfilling  this  law  of  compensation,  the  School  Board 


MISS  ELEANOR,  RIGGS  155 

has  supplied  many  of  the  schools  with  electric  lights,  so  thai 
the  school  is  open  for  night  lectures  and  meetings,  where  the 
entire  district  is  invited  to  hear  well-arrange J  educational  talks. 

Some  of  these  meetings  have  been  devoted  to  questions  of 
raising  more  funds  for  schools,  the  need  for  compulsory  edu- 
cational laws,  or  the  need  for  better  equipment  of  schools. 
Also,  illustrated  lectures  on  travel  and  art  have  been  given, 
the  great  work  of  the  Audubon  Society  has  been  demonstrate*!, 
and  the  pertinent  question  of  transmission  of  yellow  fever  by 
the  stegomyia  has  been  explained. 

One  cannot  discuss  the  work  of  co-operation  of  home  and 
school  without  referring  to  the  broad  influence  of  the  Public 
School  Alliance,  which  has  guided  and  stimulated  this  work  as 
no  other  impetus  has  done.  Composed,  as  it  is,  of  an  unusually 
large  membership  of  public  school  patrons,  its  work  of  unifying 
school  interests  has  been  most  effective. 

The  Public  School  Alliance  was  organized  in  New  Orleans 
t\vo  years  ago.  through  the  direction  of  the  New  Orleans  Edu- 
cational Association,  whose  members — public  school  teachers  of 
this  city — realized  the  absolute  necessity  of  making  an  effort 
to  secure  more  funds  for  the  pressing  demands  made  upon 
the  school  system.  Invitation  Was  sent  to  the  local  Schoo! 
Board,  to  the  State  Board  of  Education,  and  to  all  Clubs  in- 
terested in  civic  questions,  to  send  delegates  to  a  special  meet- 
ing. Accordingly,  in  February,  1905,  this  movement  crys- 
tallized into  a  permanent  organization,  known  as  the  Public 
School  Alliance,  whose  objects  and  purposes  are  stated  in  its 
constitution,  as  follows:  "To  seek  the  best  means  of  increasing 
the  sums  of  money  to  be  annually  devoted  to  the  support  of 
the  free  common  schools  of  the  city  of  New  Orleans;  to  aid 
in  the  enforcement  of  such  means,  and  to  direct  and  exert  in- 
fluences for  the  betterment  of  the  public  schools  of  this  city. ' ' 

"Any  white  person  over  the  age  of  eighteen  (18)  years,  who 
declares  his  or  her  support  of  the  objects  and  purposes  of  this 
Alliance,  shall  be  eligible  to  membership  upon  payment  of 
one  year's  dues,  which  are  hereby  fixed  at  fifty  (50)  cents." 

Notices  inviting  membership  were  sent  to  the  patrons  of  each 
public  school  by  the  principal  and  associates  of  the  school,  and' 


156  WOMAN'S   CO-OPERATION    IX    XORT1I    CAROLINA 

this  work  resulted  in  establishing  a  membership  of  more  than 
five  thousand. 

The  following  methods  were  suggested  to  increase  the  reve- 
nues of  the  schools:  An  equalization  of  assessments,  a  special 
tax,  and  an  increased  retail  liquor  license.  The  last  of  these 
was  adopted  as  presenting  possibilities  of  immediate  source 
of  revenue.  A  campaign  was  carried  on  for  two  years,  which 
has  resulted  in  an  increase,  thus  providing  extra  revenue  for 
the  Department  of  Public  Works,  Police  and  Fire  Departments, 
and  adding  eighty  thousand  dollars  to  the  school  budget  for 
the  erection  of  school  buildings. 

Besides  the  work  of  finance,  the  Alliance  has  been  actively 
engaged  in  the  matter  of  securing  a  compulsory  school  attend- 
ance law,  and  in  creating  sentiment  in  favor  of  industrial 
schools. 

When  the  Alliance  was  first  organized,  the  watchword  was, 
' '  A  Million  Dollars  Per  Annum  for  Public  Schools. ' '  Through 
the  rise  in  property  values  of  the  city,  greater  revenues  have 
been  added  to  the  local  school  fund,  and  this,  in  connection 
with  other  sources,  has  secured  the  million  dollar  mark.  How- 
ever, as  the  demands  of  the  school  system  increase,  the  work 
of  the  Alliance  must  also  go  forward,  not  limiting  itself  to  any 
fixed  figures. 

In  summing  up  the  work,  we  may  add  that  the  Co-operative 
Clubs  have  stimulated  school  districts  to  individual  work,  while 
the  Public  School  Alliance  has  stimulated  the  city  to  general 
efforts,  the  work  of  the  one  being  interdependent  on  the  other. 

MRS.  MARTHA  GIELOW,  OF  ALABAMA. 

I  come  last  because  I  am  at  the  foot  of  the  class  and 
stand  simply  for  the  illiterates.  After  all,  what  has  been  said 
at  this  great  convention  by  our  great  educators  and  others  of 
what  has  been  done  and  what  is  being  done  for  education,  it 
would  seem  that  other  efforts  are  useless,  and  any  other  organi- 
zation unnecessary. 

But,  friends,  such  an  assumption  is  only  in  the  seeming, 
for,  notwithstanding  the  tidal  wave  of  education  which  has 


MRS.   MARTHA  GIELOW  157 

swept  over  the  land  in  the  last  few  years,  in  spite  of  all  our 
educators,  in  spite  of  all  that  our  dear  women  are  doing, 
there  is  still  a  work  to  be  done  that  is  of  the  most  vital  im- 
portance. If  you  would  go  to  New  York  during  the  season,  you 
would  find  missionaries  from  Virginia,  Georgia,  Kentucky,  Ten- 
nessee, Alabama,  North  Carolina  and  Arkansas— men  and  women 
who  are  seeking  to  carry  light  into  the  dark  places  of  the  remote 
mountain  districts  of  the  South,  where  education  and  civilization 
and  Christianization  have  barely  penetrated  You  would  hear 
stories  of  these  neglected  white  children  that  would  break 
your  heart— not  of  just  a  few  here  and  there,  but  of  the  hun- 
dreds of  splendid  girls  and  boys,  descendants  of  the  best  blood 
of  America,  cut  off  from  the  light  of  progress.  We  have  in  this 
great  Appalachian  region  two  million  uneducated  people,  and 
in  response  to  that  mute  appeal,  that  silent  longing  for  just  a 
chance,  the  Southern  Industrial  Educational  Association  came 
forth.  Now  it  is  to  aid  those  that  have  had  no  chance  that  I 
ask  your  interest,  your  aid,  your  co-operation  in  this  work ;  for, 
though  we  have  a  complete  organization,  with  officers  and  trus- 
tees of  high  integrity  and  standing;  though  we  have  our  treas- 
urer ready  to  be  bonded  and  our  treasury  ready  for  the  needed 
millions  for  this  work,  we  have  not  yet  touched  the  hearts  and 
pockets  of  our  great  philanthropists.  But  we  will. 

Now,  our  Association  reminds  me  of  Uncle  Billy's  sermon  on 
the  Requirements  of  a  Preacher  of  the  Gospel:  "Dar  is 
three  requirements,  my  brethren  fur  de  preacher  un  de  Gospel— 
knowledge  in  de  haid,  sperrit  in  de  heart,  and  money  in  de 
pocket.  "We  have  'de  knowledge  in  de  haid,  and  de  sperrit 
in  de  heart,'  but,  friends,  we  haven't  got  'de  money  in  de 
pocket.'  '  Now,  why  should  education  be  like  a  mother  who 
gives  all  to  one  child  and  nothing  to  the  other?  Why  should 
she  take,  one  by  the  hand  and  teach  it  to  walk,  to  hop,  to 
jump,  to  skip,  to  climb,  to— fly !  while  the  other  is  still  crawling, 
not  even  walking,  though  the  mother  (the  nation)  proudly 
claims  the  parentage  of  both? 

Come  and  help  us !  It  is  grand  and  glorious  to  see  the  won- 
derful strides  in  education,  the  mighty  colleges,  the  wonderful 
progress  of  town  and  civic  improvement;  but  think  of  those 


158  WOMAN'S  CO-OPERATION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 

who  have  not  yet  seen  a  book,  and  help  us  give  them  a  chance 
to  become  enlightened  citizens  of  this  great  country.  Think 
of  the  work  being  done  by  Miss  Berry  at  Rome,  Ga.  Oh !  if  you 
could  only  visit  that  school,  as  I  have,  and  see  what  she  is 
doing  with  the  raw  material  of  the  uneducated  boy  from  the 
mountains,  you  would  realize  the  importance  of  our  work.  And 
yet  no  educational  association  except  ours  has  sent  her  aid  in 
the  great  struggle.  If  from  the  millions  that  go  to  polish 
the  spires  of  our  colleges  one  million  could  go  to  endow  this 
school  for  illiterate  poor  white  boys  of  the  highlands,  what  a 
work  it  could  do!  Until  this  work  for  the  uneducated  is 
aided  by  the  great  philanthropists,  we  are  asking  for  individual 
memberships  to  our  organization.  I  invite  you  all  to  become 
members— $1  a  year— and  to  help  us  in  this  mighty  crusade 
against  illiteracy. 


The  President  requested  Mrs.  Hollowell  to  hold  a  meeting 
on  the  following  morning  for  informal  discussion  of  the  ques- 
tions brought  out  in  the  papers  of  the  afternoon.  After  this 
the  President  declared  the  meeting  adjourned. 


A  short  business  meeting  of  the  Women's  Interstate  Asso- 
ciation for  the  Improvement  of  Schools  was  held  on  April  llth, 
at  6  P.  M.,  and  presided  over  by  Mrs.  W.  R.  Hollowell  as 
Chairman.  The  following  officers  were  re-elected: 

Mrs.  J.  Lindsay  Patterson,  North  Carolina — President. 

Mrs.  J.  D.  Matlock,  Alabama— Vice-President. 

Miss  Mary  T.  Nance,  South  Carolina— Secretary  and  Treas- 
urer. 

LENA  B.  HENDERSON, 
Acting  Secretary. 


WEDNESDAY  EVENING,  APRIL  10th 

DR.  EDWIN  A.  ALDERMAN,  IN  THE  CHAIR. 

The  Conference  was  called  to  order  at  8  o'clock. 

After  announcement  by  the  Secretary,  reports  of  committees 
were  called  for.  The  Committee  on  Resolution,  through  its 
chairman,  Dr.  W.  L.  Poteat,  reported  as  follows: 

Your  committee  beg  to  offer  for  adoption  the  following  reso- 
lutions : 

1.  That   the   Conference   for  Education   in   the   South,   with 
the  view  of  relating  itself  in  more  definite  and  practical  ways 
to  our  educational  task,  commend  the  work  of  such  organiza- 
tions as  the  School  Improvement  League,  and  urge  that  they 
be  extended  so  as  to  embrace  the  whole  citizenship  of  the  sev- 
eral  States   in  their  membership,   and   include   in   their   scope 
all  the  factors  of  the  educational  problem. 

2.  That   the    Conference   record   its   grateful    recognition    of 
the  distinguished  services  of  Mr.  Robert  C.   Ogden,  to  whose 
wisdom  and  broad-minded  patriotism  the  success  of  these  Con- 
ferences is  largely  due. 

3.  That  the  Conference  record  its  appreciation  of  the  distinct 
elevation  of  the  standard  of  efficiency    in    the    body    of    men 
charged  with  the  responsibilities  of  public  education  through- 
out the   South   since   our  first  session,    in   1898,   and   offer   to 
them,  to  the  State  Superintendents  in  particular,  its  hearty  con- 
gratulations upon  the  brightening  of  the  entire  situation,  which 
is  justifying  and  rewarding  their  devotion. 

4.  That  the  Conference  recognize  gratefully  the  positive  aiiJ 
important  contribution  to  popular  education  made  by  the  col- 
leges of  the  South,  by  the  State  institutions,  and,  no  less,  by 
the  private  and  denominational  colleges,  without  whose  co-opera- 
tion our  propaganda  could  not  have  succeeded. 


160  COMMITTEE    ON   RESOLUTION 

5.  That  the  religious  and  the  secular  pre&s  of  the  country, 
which  has  supported  with  its  potent  influence  the  education 
of  all  the  people,  is  entitled  to  no  little  of  the  credit  of  the 
improved  educational  prospect  in  which  we  rejoice  to-day. 

6.  That  the  Conference  extend  its  thanks  to  the  management 
of  the  Carolina  Hotel  and  to  the  railroads  for  courtesies,  and 
to  the  newspapers  which  have  reported  its  sessions. 

W.  L.  POTEAT, 

J.    H.   KlRKLAND, 

H.  N.  SNYDEB. 

The  Committee  on  Memorial  Eesolutions  for  Dr.  Charles  D. 
Mclver  reported,  through  its  chairman,  Dr.  James  E.  Russell, 
as  follows: 

The  Conference  for  Education  in  the  South  desires  to  record 
its  grateful  appreciation  of  the  life  and  services  of  Dr.  Charles 
Duncan  Mclver. 

A  native  of  North  Carolina,  endowed  with  the  virtues  of  a 
Scotch  ancestry,  schooled  in  the  adversity  that  follows  war,  he 
early  developed  those  traits  of  character  which  made  him  a 
leader  of  men.  He  loved  his  friends,  and  they,  in  turn,  were 
devoted  to  him.  His  innate  sense  of  justice,  quickened  by  in- 
stinctive sympathy,  impelled  him  to  champion  the  cause  of 
the  oppressed  and  unfortunate.  To  him  ignorance  was  slavery, 
and  to  the  call  of  children  for  freedom  through  education,  he 
responded  by  unswervingly  offering  the  full  measure  of  his 
manhood.  His  first  vote  was  cast  for  a  local  tax  for  public 
schools,  and  his  life  long  he  adhered  to  the  doctrine  that  liberal 
taxation,  fairly  levied  and  properly  applied  is  the  chief  mark 
of  a  civilized  people.  He  knew  well  the  power  of  personal 
influence  and  understood  as  few  do  thvi  full  significance  of 
the  office  of  teacher.  Chivalrous  in  his  respect  for  womanhood, 
convinced  that  "no  State  which  will  once  educate  its  mothers 
need  have  any  fear  about  future  illiteracy,"  his  first  great 
public  device  was  the  creation  of  a  college  for  the  training  of 
teachers  and  the  higher  education  of  women,  an  enduring  monu- 
ment erected  at  public  expense  and  consecrated  by  his  devotion 


BRUCE   R.    PAYNE  161 

to  the  public  service  of  his  native  State.  So  efficient  was  his 
work  in  North  Carolina  that  other  States  eagerly  sought  his 
assistance.  And  every  appeal  for  help,  whether  from  his  own 
beloved  South,  or  from  the  North,  or  from  the  "West,  was  an- 
swered to  the  limit  of  his  strength.  He  had  the  genius  of 
friendliness  that  made  him  at  home  with  those  of  every  class 
and  in  every  section.  Wherever  he  went  his  enthusiasm  was 
contagious,  and  the  good  he  did  no  man  can  estimate.  What 
his  leadership  has  meant  to  this  Conference  we  are  beginning 
to  know  and  appreciate.  He  brought  to  us  the  sunshine  of 
his  hope;  he  stimulated  us  with  abundant  good  cheer;  he 
guided  us  with  infinite  common  sense;  he  inspired  us  with 
patriotic  fervor;  he  enlisted  us  permanently  in  the  cause  to 
which  he  gave  his  life ;  and  he  made  of  every  one  of  us  a  friend 
who  loved  him — and  we  love  him  still. 

"This  tribute  we  pay  to  his  memory,  and  in  bringing  it  we 
acknowledge  publicly  the  debt  we  owe  to  a  life  that  has  been 
to  us  all  a  blessed  benediction." 

JAMES  E.  RUSSELL, 
J.  Y.  JOYNER, 
EDWIN  A.  ALDERMAN, 
FREDERICK  W.  MOORE. 
H.  C.  GUNNELS. 

The  Chairman  then  announced  the  first  topic  of  the  evening — 
"The  Movement  for  Improved  Secondary  Schools"— and  intro- 
duced Dr.  Bruce  R.  Payne,  Professor  of  Secondary  Education 
in  the  University  of  Virginia. 

HIGH  SCHOOL  PROGRESS  IN  VIRGINIA. 

BRUCE  R.  PAYNE. 

The  progress  of  secondary  education  in  Virginia  since  the 
passage  of  the  High  School  Bill,  a  little  over  a  year  ago,  reads 
like  a  fairy  story.  I  shall  stop  at  the  expiration  of  the  fifteen 
minutes  assigned  me,  but  I  do  not  hope  to  give  more  than  a  brief 
of  this  progress  in  that  length  of  time. 


162  HIGH  SCHOOL  PROGRESS 

Some  months  ago  I  sent  out  a  ' '  questionnaire ' '  to  all  the  county 
superintendents  in  Virginia,  seeking  to  discover  the  direct  and 
indirect  effects  of  our  high  school  appropriation.  Below  are 
some  of  the  results,  which  would  have  to  be  materially  altered 
if  the  growth  of  the  past  few  months  were  added. 

One  huntired  and  sixty-eight  high  schools  have  met  the  re- 
quirements of  the  State  Board  of  Education  and  are  now  re- 
ceiving State  subsidy,  ranging  from  $250  to  $400.  These  re- 
quirements are  that  they  shall  expend,  for  high  school  purposes, 
one  dollar  raised  locally  for  each  dollar  contributed  by  the  State, 
and  that  they  shall  employ  a  sufficient  number  of  well  trained 
teachers  to  teach  the  subjects  required  in  the  new  State  high 
school  course  of  study.  These  figures  mean  that  168  high  schools 
have  begun  in  Virginia  and  if  we  are  persistent  and  idealistic 
in  our  future  efforts  we  shall  develop  these  into  real  schools 
of  the  first  grade  before  long. 

Not  the  least  beneficial  result  is  the  new  State  high  school 
course  of  study.  It  required  the  work  of  many  men  for  many 
months,  and  I  believe  it  will,  in  the  main,  stand  the  test  of 
scientific  investigation.  It  was  submitted  for  criticism  to  the 
leading  educational  experts  of  the  country.  Its  requirements, 
if  fulfilled,  will  not  only  fit  the  student  for  business  life,  but  also 
for  entrance  into  the  universities  of  the  country,  and  professional 
service. 

There  were  138  more  high  school  teachers  in  Virginia  this 
year  than  twelve  months  ago. 

Forty-one  counties  open  their  high  schools  free  to  all  the  white 
children.  Outside  of  these  counties  there  are  eighty-five  districts 
(townships)  which  have  free  high  schools. 

Besides  the  $50,000  appropriation  by  the  State,  the  local  com- 
munities have  appropriated  about  $301,037  for  high  school 
buildings  and  repairs.  And  while  it  is  difficult  at  this  time  to 
procure  the  amount  provided  locally  for  permanent  support,  the 
returns  received  at  the  State  Department,  supplemented  by  my 
own  figures,  indicate  that  the  aggregate  will  not  fall  far  short 
of  $200,000.  Thus,  instead  of  raising  dollar  for  dollar,  the  local 
authorities  have  raised,  during  the  first  year  of  the  existence 
of  the  high  school  system,  five  dollars  for  each  dollar  received 


BK.UCE  R,   PAYNE  163 

from  the  State  exchequer.  In  this  connection  it  is  notable  that 
$41,789  has  been  contributed  from  private  sources  in  twenty-five 
counties  for  school  buildings  during  the  year  All  this  is  Vir- 
ginia money,  contributed  by  Virginia  citizens. 

The  county  and  district  taxes  in  high  school  districts  have 
been  raised  four  cents  on  the  hundred  dollars  during  the  year. 

One  of  the  important  effects  of  the  high  school  bill  is  its  in- 
fluence upon  the  adjacent  elementary  schools.  One  hundred 
and  forty- three  schools  were  consolidated  in  the  organization  of 
these  168  new  high  schools;  106  grammar  grade  teachers  were 
added  in  order  to  afford  better  preparation  for  the  high  school 
students.  Furthermore,  the  new  high  school  course  of  study 
created  a  universal  demand  for  a  uniform  course  of  study  for 
the  elementary  schools.  This  has  now  been  prepared  and  will 
be  officially  applied  next  year. 

What  does  this  marvelous  progress  mean  for  Virginia  1  Many 
things,  much  that  I  cannot  here  narrate.  It  means  that  Vir- 
ginia has  determined,  at  all  cost,  to  bridge  the  chasm  existing 
between  her  elementary  schools  and  her  university.  It  means 
that  equality  of  educational  opportunity  shall  no  longer  be  de- 
nied the  Virginia  boy.  It  means  that  in  this  good  State  of  ours 
every  boy  shall  have  his  chance  to  develop  to  the  furthest  capacity 
his  God-given  talents  for  the  service  of  the  nation. 

Professionally,  it  has  meant  and  still  betokens  much  that  is 
not  seen  on  the  surface.  The  educational  campaign  inaugurated 
three  years  ago  produced  the  rich  fruitage  of  this  hour.  The 
noblest  of  Virginia  statesmen,  under  the  leadership  of  Governor 
Montague  and  his  successor,  Governor  Swanson,  have  lent  the 
movement  all  the  beneficent  strength  of  political  leadership,  and 
together  with  an  aroused  Legislature  they  produced  in  practical 
realization  what  we  all  dreamed  of  in  those  earlier  campaigns. 
With  his  hand  always  upon  the  throttle,  our  newly-elected  and 
most  efficient  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  Mr. 
J.  D.  Eggleston,  has  rallied  all  the  forces  and  toiled  late  in  the 
night  planning  and  executing  for  the  permanency  of  the  second- 
ary school  system.  He  has  had  the  heartiest  co-operation  of  the 
Co-operative  Education  Association.  This  movement  is  not 


164  HIGH  SCHOOL  PROGRESS 

0 

spasmodic,  but  has  come  to  stay,  because  beneath  it  lie  wise  plan- 
ning and  steady  co-operation. 

t  What  is  there  yet  to  be  done  ?  In  my  judgment,  nearly  every- 
thing except  the  inception  of  the  system  is  yet  before  us.  We 
have  the  same  problems  to  face  which  any  great  business  enter- 
prise has,  which  has  erected  its  building  and  installed  its  equip- 
ment. We  shall  have  to  perfect  the  enterprise.  In  method  this 
implies  that  we  shall  have  to  select  the  strategic  schools  and  build 
them  up  to  the  ideal.  There  are  two  things  which  I  fear  most 
in  this  Southern  educational  awakening.  First,  that  we  shall 
too  quickly  become  satisfied.  If  the  public  in  Virginia  becomes 
satisfied  with  a  second  or  third-grade  high  school  before  it  has 
been  transformed  into  a  first-grade  one  we  shall  have  gained  but 
little.  In  the  next  place,  I  tremble  to  think  of  the  relative 
dearth  of  highly-trained,  expert  educational  leaders  in  the  South. 
We  have  a  few  good  and  capable  men  in  each  State,  but  what  are 
so  few  amid  such  a  harvest?  What  we  need  now,  and  what  we 
must  have,  is  an  increase  of  local  educational  leadership,  more 
men  who  can  go  inside  of  those  high  schools  with  the  ideals, 
training  and  experience  of  experts  who  will  develop  them  along 
lines  of  permanent  helpfulness.  The  chief  alarm  that  I  have 
now  is  because  of  the  apathy  of  the  leaders  of  this  movement  in 
the  South  with  reference  to  the  provision  of  an  adequate  training 
for  educational  leadership.  We  have  the  trained  educational 
campaigner  and  we  still  need  him.  But  a  new  type  of  expert 
is  the  only  hope  of  further  development.  If  we  do  not  get  him 
soon  we  shall  -witness  a  falling  off  that  will  be  sickening.  There 
is  too  little  opportunity  in  the  South  for  the  adequate  prepara- 
tion of  efficient  high  school  teachers.  Even  the  Summer  Schools 
seem  not  to  have  taken  up  this  matter  seriously.  Without  certain 
definitely-provided  assistance  it  seems  unlikely  that  the  high 
school  teacher  will  go  North  for  such  training,  or  that  the  higher 
institutions  of  learning  near  him  will  be  able  to  offer  the  needed 
opportunities. 

The  South  is  undergoing  just  now  the  greatest  economic,  social, 
and  educational  transformation  yet  witnessed  in  this  country. 
There  are  upheavals  of  the  old  life,  and  hasty  installations  of  the 
new.  This  demands  leadership  to  clear  up  social  consciousness. 


W.    H.   HAXD  165 

We  need  to  Tmow  what  the  new  problems  attendant  upon  this 
new  life  are.  No  one  seems  to  tell  us.  Unless  there  shall  arise- 
economic  experts,  sociological  experts,  and  educational  experts 
to  project  before  the  popular  mind  in  a  clear-cut  way  the  newly- 
developed  questions,  we  shall  likely  find  confusion  which  will, 
by  disrepute,  react,  in  a  baleful  way,  upon  all  our  progress. 
Our  next  step,  educationally,  then,  is  to  provide  a  rapid  increase 
of  expert  leadership. 

REPORT  ON  SECONDARY  EDUCATION  IN  SOUTH 
CAROLINA. 

W.  H.  HAND,  UNIVERSITY  OP  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 

June,  1906,  marks  the  beginning  of  an  organized  and  syste- 
matic effort  in  South  Carolina  to  improve  her  secondary  schools. 
At  that  time  the  State  University  established  within  its  De- 
partment of  Education  the  Chair  of  Secondary  Education,  the 
gift  of  the  General  Education  Board.  Three  weeks  later  the 
State  Teachers'  Association  met  in  annual  session.  Your 
speaker  had  been  invited  to  address  the  Association  on  "Needed 
High  School  Legislation."  To  this  meeting  several  public- 
spirited  men  outside  the  teaching  profession  came  by  special 
invitation.  After  my  address  two  conferences  were  held  to 
discuss  the  plan  outlined  in  the  address.  A  committee  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  Association  to  draft  a  High  School  bill,  and  to 
present  it  to  the  State  Legislature  for  enactment.  This  com- 
mittee made  an  extensive  study  of  the  high  school  situation  at 
home  and  of  the  high  school  laws  of  other  States.  After  having 
met  several  times  in  conference,  the  committee  agreed  upon  a 
High  School  bill,  which,  with  one  amendment,  became  a  law 
February  19,  1907. 

In  the  meantime  hard  work  had  to  be  done.  At  the  very 
outset  the  committee  set  its  face  toward  the  problem  of  en- 
larging the  facilities  in  the  high  schools  already  established, 
and  of  establishing  high  schools  at  strategic  points  where  none 
existed.  The  committee  saw  no  way  to  reasonable  success  with- 
out State  aid  to  supplement  local  effort.  Inasmuch  as  the  State 


1(H)  SECONDARY  EDUCATION 

had  never  before  made  any  direct  financial  provision  for  sec- 
ondary schools,  to  secure  the  desired  appropriation  meant  our 
meeting  with  quiet  indifference,  on  the  one  hand,  and  in- 
flexible opposition,  on  the  other  hand.  It  was  obvious  that 
the  whole  high  school  question  must  be  carried  to  the  people,  if 
any  effective  legislation  were  to  be  secured.  Two  mischievous 
misconceptions  had  to  be  met.  The  first  was  that  most  of  our 
high  schools  were  adequate  as  to  the  length  and  scope  of  their 
courses  of  study.  Many  argued  that  their  high  school  course 
of  three  years  was  advanced  enough,  since  our  colleges  would 
take  its  students  after  completing  its  course,  and  even  before 
completing  it.  These  persons  forget  that  the  colleges  were  once 
forced  to  take  unprepared  students,  and  now  it  is  difficult  to 
overcome  a  bad  habit  once  established.  The  second  miscon- 
ception was  perhaps  more  mischievous.  It  gave  the  people 
the  notion  that  the  high  school  exists  primarily,  if  not  solely, 
to  prepare  students  for  college.  People  who  take  this  view  fail 
to  see  that  possibly  the  most  important  function  of  the  Ameri- 
can high  school  of  to-day  is  to  prepare  its  students  for  voca- 
tional life  and  citizenship — to  meet  the  pressing  needs  of  nine- 
tenths  of  the  high  school  students  who  never  go  to  college  at 
all,  but  who  go  direct  from  the  high  school  to  take  their  places 
as  workers  and  citizens. 

Educators  of  all  classes  throughout  the  State  lent  us  their 
intelligent  and  active  support.  Addresses  were  made,  articles 
were  written  and  circulated,  and  conferences  were  frequent. 
Prior  to  the  approval  of  the  High  School  Act,  in  February, 
your  speaker  visited  fifty-four  places  in  the  State,  and  made 
fifty  public  addresses.  Since  the  passage  of  the  act,  he  has 
visited  sixteen  places,  and  made  thirteen  addresses.  From  prac- 
tically all  the  high  schools  in  the  State,  reasonably  full  and 
accurate  information  was  gathered  as  to  their  courses  of  study, 
teaching  force  and  cost  of  maintenance.  The  information  was 
carefully  tabulated,  the  tables  analyzed,  and  the  most  radical 
deficiencies  pointed  out.  The  University  published  this  in- 
formation in  the  shape  of  a  bulletin,  and  sent  several  hun- 
dred copies  throughout  the  State.  Besides,  the  State  Super- 
intendent incorporated  the  bulletin  in  his  annual  report  for 


W.    H.    HAND  167 

1906.  Finally,  just  a  week  prior  to  the  convening  of  the  State 
Legislature,  the  county  and  city  superintendents  of  the  State 
met  in  Columbia.  Two  days  were  spent  in  discussing  high 
school  conditions  and  needed  legislation  for  improving  the  high 
schools.  These  addresses  were  printed  and  distributed  through- 
out the  State. 

After  a  long,  and  at  times  precarious,  fight  in  the  Lower 
House  of  the  Legislature,  our  high  school  bill  became  a  law- 
Its  chief  features  are :  1.  A  county,  a  township  or  several  town- 
ships, any  two  or  more  school  districts  or  an  incorporated 
town  of  not  more  than  1,000  inhabitants  can  form  a  high  school 
district  by  holding  an  election.  2.  The  trustees  of  any  high 
school  district,  after  its  establishment,  have  the  power  to  levy 
annually  a  local  tax  not  exceeding  two  mills  on  the  dollar  of 
all  taxable  property  in  the  district.  3.  A  high  school,  in  order 
to  receive  State  aid,  must  have  at  least  a  two-year  course  of 
study,  must  employ  at  least  two  teachers  in  the  high  scnooi, 
and  must  have  not  fewer  than  twenty-five  high  school  pupils. 
4.  The  State  Board  of  Education  has  full  power  to  inspect 
and  classify  all  high  schools  coming  under  this  act.  5.  An 
annual  appropriation  of  fifty  thousand  dollars  to  aid  these  high 
schools.  6.  No  high  school  can  receive  from  the  State  more 
than  fifty  per  cent,  of  its  local  income.  7.  The  State  aid  is 
available  July  1,  1907. 

The  one  amendment  made  by  the  Legislature,  and  referred 
to  in  the  first  paragraph  of  this  report,  war*  to  debar  towns  of 
more  than  1,000  inhabitants  from  establishing  high  schools 
under  this  act,  unless  each  town  includes  at  least  one  other 
school  district  to  form  a  high  school  district.  The  wisdom  of 
this  restriction  remains  to  be  seen.  It  requires  no  foresight, 
however,  to  see  that  it  will  be  more  difficult  for  the  larger 
towns  to  secure  the  State  aid  than  it  would  be  if  they  were 
on  a  common  basis  with  the  towns  of  1,000  population.  Yet, 
it  is  possible  that  this  restriction  may  work  for  good.  All  of 
us,  perhaps,  have  sought  to  prevent  the  multiplication  of  small 
and  helpless  schools.  That  caution  finds  its  expression  in  the 
act,  in  requiring  two  teachers  and  twenty-five  pupils  in  the 
high  school  before  giving  it  State  aid. 


168  HIGH   SCHOOL   AND   UNIVERSITY 

As  to  results.  A  number  of  school  districts  have  voted  special 
tax  levies  for  the  support  of  the  entire  schools,  including  high 
school  support.  Most  of  these  levies  are  iwo  mills  on  the  dollar 
of  taxable  property.  Since  last  July  upward  of  $200,000  has 
been  voted  in  school  bonds  for  new  buildings,  and  elections 
are  now  pending  which  will  aggregate  at  least  $100,000  more. 
Several  high  schools  have  added  a  year's  work  to  their  courses 
of  study,  and  several  other  schools  have  added  either  elective 
studies  or  elective  courses.  Exact  figures  will  not  be  available 
before  the  close  of  the  present  scholastic  year.  More  than 
seventy-five  places  are  now  making  application  for  high  school 
aid,  or  for  instructions  as  to  the  manner  of  establishing  such 
schools.  The  State  Board  of  Education  issued  its  regulations 
last  week.  It  goes  without  saying  that  some  of  the  places 
asking  for  aid  cannot  come  up  to  the  requirements. 

By  September  15th,  it  is  safe  to  say,  fifty  schools  will  be  in 
•operation  under  our  law.  Since  the  State  aid  is  not  available 
until  after  July  1st,  our  people  have  ample  time  to  organize 
their  high  schools  without  undue  haste— the  thing  we  have 
worked  diligently  to  avoid.  It  is  very  desirable  that  these 
schools  be  established  on  a  permanent  basis,  and  only  after  a 
mature  canvass  of  the  situation  in  each  ease. 

The  closing  address  of  the  evening  was  by  Dr.  James  H. 
Kirkland,  Chancellor  of  Vanderbilt  University. 

THE  HIGH  SCHOOL  AND  THE  UNIVERSITY. 
JAMES  H.  KIRKLAND. 

My  subject  has  reference  to  colleges  rather  than  to  univer- 
sities. I  shall  have  nothing  to  say  with  regard  to  professional 
work  or  even  to  graduate  work  that  may  be  carried  on  by 
universities,  but  am  concerned  only  with  the  work  done  by 
them  in  the  college  department.  It  is  my  purpose  to  consider 
the  work  of  school  and  college  in  their  mutual  relationship.  It 
is  agreed  that  this  relationship  is  very  close;  that  these  insti- 
tutions are  not  independent  educational  forces,  but  must  be 


JAMES    H.    KIRKLAISTD  169 

considered  as  engaged  in  one  common  work  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  a  certain  degree  of  unity  runs  through  the  whole  educa- 
tional process,  from  the  kindergarten  to  the  university.  It  does 
not  follow,  however,  that  this  educational  development  is  at 
all  stages  subject  to  the  same  laws  or  that  it  can  be  carried 
on  under  identical  conditions.  On  the  contrary,  experience  has 
shown  that  this  work  must  be  divided  into  different  stages 
separate  from  each  other  and  differing  entirely  in  method  and 
environment,  if  not  in  purpose.  The  kindergarten  is  one  in- 
stitution, the  grammar  school  another,  the  high  school  another, 
the  college  another,  and  the  university  still  another. 

Our  whole  discussion  centers  around  two  questions,  which 
serve  to  outline  the  purpose  and  extent  of  this  paper.  First, 
where  is  the  proper  line  of  demarcation  between  high  school 
and  college  work?  Second,  by  what  character  of  institution 
shall  high  school  work  be  done? 

It  would  seem  that  the  answer  to  these  questions  ouglit  iioc 
to  be  difficult.  General  educational  theory  has  established  an 
orthodox  answer  to  both  of  them.  But  if  we  confine  our  atten- 
tion chiefly  to  Southern  institutions,  wi*  shall  see  that  these 
institutions  in  practice  do  not  answer  these  questions  alike,  nor 
do  they  generally  answer  them  in  accord  with  accepted  edu- 
cational theory.  For  a  score- of  years  I  have  felt  that  one  of 
the  most  important  tasks  before  Southern  educational  leaders 
is  to  secure  a  correct  answer  to  these  questions,  given  not  on 
paper,  but  worked  out  in  the  life  of  our  institutions.  In  my 
opinion,  successful  educational  work  depend^  on  the  acceptance 
of  the  best  theories  of  work  that  are  current  to-day.  We  must 
live  each  day  in  the  light  of  the  opportunities  and  rasponsi- 
bilities  which  that  day  brings.  We  may  not  govern  ourselves 
or  excuse  ourselves  by  standards  that  were  in  vogue  at  other 
times  and  in  other  places.  A  Greek  citizen  may  have  been 
well  educated  through  the  study  of  geometry  and  philosophy, 
but  our  modern  university  curriculum  must  include  more  than 
these.  A  century  ago  Harvard  graduated  students  at  eighteen, 
but  to  do  so  to-day  would  forfeit  the  place  of  leadership  this 
great  institution  has  worthily  won.  Fifty  years  ago  chemistry 
was  universally  taught  without  a  laboratory,  but  if  we  should 


170  II  Hi  II    SCHOOL   AND    UNIVERSITY 

do  so  to-day  we  should  be  guilty  of  educational  sham.  In  a 
word,  the  experience  of  the  world  establishes  for  each  genera- 
tion certain  educational  standards  and  principles,  and  no  in- 
stitution can  safely  be  allowed  to  deviate  too  widely  from  these. 
Without  meaning  to  develop  all  institutions  alike  or  to  hold 
all  to  a  procrusjean  measurement,  it  remains  true  that  all  in- 
stitutions must  alike  hold  sacred  the  accepted,  theories  of  work 
and  life.  To  sum  up  the  question  in  one  illustration — may  we 
regard  it  as  a  legitimate  performance  for  an  institution  calling 
itself  a  university  to  give  a  high  school  course,  dignify  it  with 
the  name  of  a  university  course,  and  reward  it  with  the  degree 
of  Bachelor  of  Arts?  We  assume  that  the  work  done  is  well 
done,  and  honestly  done.  The  question  we  are  raising  concerns 
itself  with  the  right  of  an  institution  to  call  by  one  name  that 
which  the  world  insists  on  calling  by  another  name.  We  main- 
tain that  an  institution  has  no  such  right,  that  to  give  such  a 
course  as  above  suggested  is  to  sin  against  light  and  oppor- 
tunity, to  evade  responsibility,  to  tear  down  intellectual  life, 
and  to  inculcate  false  ideas  and  ideals.  The  growth  of  edu- 
cational standards,  like  the  growth  of  social  and  ethical  stand- 
ards, is  under  the  control  of  no  absolute  law.  but  society  must 
conform  to  the  demands  of  the  day.  Slavery  to-day  would  be 
a  very  different  proposition  from  slavery  one  hundred  years 
ago,  both  socially  and  ethically.  An  appeal  for  sound  stand- 
ards in  education  is  not  a  mere  question  of  educational  theory, 
as,  for  example,  the  question  of  classics  against  the  sciences, 
or  the  number  of  baccalaureate  degrees  that  should  be  given. 
We  should  rather  say  that  an  appeal  for  sound  standards  is 
an  appeal  for  right  living  and  right  thinking,  an  appeal  for 
truth,  an  appeal  for  progress.  Holding,  as  I  do,  these  views,  I 
do  not  hesitate  to  answer  my  own  questions  and  to  say  that  the 
line  of  demarcation  between  the  high  schools  and  the  college 
should  be  the  completion  of  the  high  school  course,  and  that 
colleges  ought  not  to  admit  students  until  this  course  is  com- 
pleted. By  the  high  school  course  I  mean  the  full  course  of 
four  years,  although  I  realize  that  even  this  does  not  describe 
exactly  the  amount  of  attainments.  It  is,  however,  accurate 


JAMES    II.    KIRKI.AXD  171 

enough  for  the  establishment  of  a  legitimate  point  of  beginning 
for  the  college. 

In  the  second  place,  I  maintain  that  this  work  should  be 
done  in  high  schools,  whether  public  or  private,  and  that  these 
schools  should  be  organized  and  equipped  for  this  especial 
purpose;  especially  do  I  claim  that  this  work  should  not  be 
done  either  by  colleges  or  universities  or  any  other  institutions 
where  it  is  conducted  under  a  name  designed  to  dignify  unduly 
the  character  of  the  work. 

Let  us  now  see  how  this  theory  accords  with  educational 
practice  in  the  South.  We  shall  find  that  high  school  work  is 
being  done  by  three  classes  of  institutions:  One  we  may  char- 
acterize as  the  public  high  school,  another  as  the  private  high 
school,  and  the  third  category  includes  all  those  illegitimate 
institutions  which  do  high  school  work  under  some  different 
and  improper  terminology. 

1.  The  public  high  school  is  at  present  making  great  progress 
in  the  South,  but  this  progress  has  not  been  so  rapid  nor  so 
satisfactory  as  has  been  claimed  by  many.  It  is  chiefly  noted 
in  States  where  the  State  university  has  taken  the  lead  and 
endeavored  to  build  up  public  schools  in  order  to  prepare  stu- 
dents for  its  own  classes.  State  institutions  have  peculiar  obli- 
gations resting  upon  them  in  connection  with  this  work.  Much 
good  ought  to  be  accomplished*  by  the  action  of  the  General 
Board  of  Education  in  establishing  chairs  of  secondary  educa- 
tion in  various  institutions  throughout  the  South.  The  pro- 
fessors filling  these  chairs  should  give  themselves  largely  to 
that  work,  and  should  be  the  means  of  building  up  and  improv- 
ing high  schools  throughout  their  various  States.  In  some 
States  there  is  an  encouraging  movement  for  county  high 
schools,  in  others  for  agricultural  district  schools,  and  many 
of  our  larger  cities  are  introducing  manual  training  high  schools 
as  well  as  improving  the  old  classical  high  school.  These  are 
all  good  and  hopeful  signs,  but  we  must  remember  that  im- 
provements of  this  character  come  slowly  and  must  be  fostered 
from  above.  Without  the  constant  supervision  and  direction  of 
colleges  and  universities  there  is  no  guarantee  that  public  high 
schools  will  really  fulfill  their  mission.  Many  public  schools 


172  HIGH   SCHOOL   AXD   UNIVERSITY 

have  adopted  the  fashion  of  calling  the  last  four  years  in  their 
course  a  high  school  course,  no  matter  where  it  ends.  A  few 
years  ago  Dr.  Harris,  U.  S.  Commissioner  of  Education,  pre- 
pared an  article  giving  a  most  cheering  account  of  the  growth 
of  the  public  high  school  in  the  South.  In  the  article  he  re- 
cords for  the  State  of  Tennessee  100  public  high  schools,  25  of 
which  report  a  four-year  high  school  course.  Altogether,  he 
thinks  5,000  pupils  are  enrolled  in  these  public  high  schools 
in  that  State.  These  returns  are  startling,  especially  when 
one,  on  investigation,  finds  that  the  report  of  the  Commissioner 
on  which  these  statistics  are  based  gives  only  a  three-year  high 
school  course  for  such  cities  as  Nashville,  Knoxville,  Jackson, 
Murfreesboro,  and  Columbia.  In  fact,  only  Chattanooga  and 
Memphis,  of  the  larger  cities,  claimed  to  have  a  four-year  course. 
The  23  other  high  schools  cited  by  the  Commissioner  as  having 
a  four-year  high  school  course  are  in  some  of  the  most  unex- 
pected localities.  White's  Store  reports  a  four-year  course, 
with  one  teacher  and  twenty-five  pupils.  Piney  Flats  reports 
a  four-year  course,  with  one  teacher  and  twenty-one  pupils. 
Chuckey  City,  a  four-year  course,  with  one  woman  teacher  and 
six  pupils.  From  such  statistics  as  these  it  is  dangerous  to 
make  too  hasty  generalizations,  and  we  dare  not  congratulate 
ourselves  that  in  Tennessee,  at  least,  the  progress  is  as  real  as 
reported. 

2.  There  are  many  private  schools  in  the  South  doing  ad- 
mirable work  as  high  schools.  In  most  cases  these  schools  bear 
a  definite  relation  to  existing  colleges  and  universities.  Some- 
times they  are  owned  and  controlled  by  them.  In  nearly  every 
case  they  have  been  built  up  by  university  influence,  and  are 
kept  alive  by  university  traditions  and  ideals.  Some  of  these 
schools,  like  those  belonging  to  the  Randolph-Macon  system  in 
Virginia,  are  large  boarding  schools,  with  extensive  plant  and 
property.  Other  colleges,  as  Wofford,  Trinity,  or  the  Univer- 
sity of  the  South,  at  Sewanee,  conduct  training  schools  in 
close  relation  to  their  college  work.  Other  institutions,  like 
Vanderbilt  University,  have  built  up  training  schools,  wide 
scattered  and  independent,  but  still,  all  under  university  in- 
fluence. This  same  influence  has  caused  the  establishment  of 


JAMKS    IT.    KIRKLAXn  173 

university  schools  in  such  cities  as  Memphis,  Atlanta,  Montgom- 
ery, and  Mobile.  These  schools  are  flourishing,  and  are  send- 
ing students  to  all  the  universities  of  the  South  and  North. 

3.  Undoubtedly  the  larger  part  of  high  school  work  in  the 
South  has  been  done  for  forty  years  by  institutions  not  calling 
themselves  high  schools  at  all.  While  the  proportion  of  work 
done  to-day  by  these  illegitimate  institutions  is  perhaps  not  so 
large  as  it  was  twenty  years  ago,  it  is  still  large  enough  to 
awaken  our  serious  consideration  and  to  call  forth  our  se- 
verest condemnation.  This  work  is  to-day  done  by  normal  col- 
leges of  every  grade  and  description,  by  a  whole  host  of  colleges 
and  seminaries  for  young  women,  by  preparatory  classes  in 
colleges  and  universities  and  technological  schools,  and,  finally, 
by  college  classes  themselves  in  these  same  institutions. 

It  can  readily  be  seen  that  it  is  hard  to  build  up  a  true  system 
of  education  where  we  are  confronted  with  this  constant  dupli- 
cation of  educational  work.  Why  should  a  State  provide  a 
technological  school  and  a  State  university  to  do  the  same  work 
that  is  done  in  the  public  high  school?  How  can  a  State  expect 
to  build  up  a  genuine  system  of  public  high  schools  when  it 
allows  that  system  to  be  torn  down  by  the  standards  and 
requirements  of  its  own  higher  institutions?  The  State  is  in 
the  same  position  as  a  merchant  would  be,  should  he  sell  the 
same  article  under  one  label  a£  tallow,  under  another  as  oleo- 
margarine, under  another  as  butter.  If  our  State  normal  schools 
would  require  even  two  years  of  high  school  work,  they  "night 
accomplish  a  more  creditable  amount  of  professional  work  and 
fit  better  teachers  in  a  shorter  time  to  take  their  places  in  the 
common  schools.  If  our  schools  of  technology  could  cease  teach- 
ing the  elements  of  English  grammar  and  arithmetic,  they  might 
be  able  to  do  more  with  agriculture,  engineering,  and  the  vari- 
ous forms  of  industry.  They  might  contribute  more  largely 
to  the  development  of  the  South 's  material  prosperity,  and  thus 
prepare  the  way  for  social  and  intellectual  progress.  If  our 
colleges  and  universities  would  concentrate  their  money  and 
attention  on  legitimate  college  students,  they  might  become  uni- 
versities in  fact  as  well  as  in  name,  and  they  certainly  would 


174  HIGH   SCHOOL   AND    UNIVERSITY 

contribute  to  the  upbuilding  of  a  general  system  of  high  schools 
throughout  the  South. 

That  these  remarks  may  not  seem  too  vague  and  theoretical 
and  lacking  in  definiteness,  I  cite  two  well  known  Southern  in- 
stitutions. One  of  these  is  called  an  agricultural  and  mechani- 
cal college;  it  has  the  benefit  of  some  contributions  from  the 
general  government  for  this  work.  The  institution  in  question 
has  more  than  700  students ;  of  these  about  600  are  really  doing 
high  school  work.  This  is  in  a  State  that  is  trying  to  build  up 
public  high  schools.  In  another  State  one  hears  the  charge 
that  the  State  university  is  one  of  the  greatest  obstacles  to  the 
development  of  the  public  high  school.  It  is  claimed  that  the 
university  takes  pupils  from  the  first  and  second  year  of  the 
high  school,  or  even  at  the  completion  of  the  eighth  grade.  An 
examination  of  the  catalogue  of  this  university  seems  to  indi- 
cate that,  if  all  students  could  be  excluded  who  ought  to  be 
in  the  high  school,  the  number  would  be  reduced  from  400  to 
100. 

An  examination  of  the  entrance  requirements  of  Southern 
institutions  bears  out  the  same  story  and  emphasizes  the  con- 
tentions that  have  been  made.  None  of  our  Southern  insti- 
tutions have  done  all  they  should  have  done  in  the  matter  of 
entrance  requirements,  and  most  of  them  have  done  next  to 
nothing.  It  is  perfectly  clear  that  in  this  matter  we  may  trust 
the  statements  of  the  catalogues.  We  may  be  perfectly  sure  that 
no  institution  enforces  more  rigid  requirements  than  are  ad- 
vertised in  public  announcements.  It  might  be  safe  to  discount 
these  public  requirements  somewhat,  for  there  are  traditions 
that  students  are  sometimes  admitted  by  institutions  on  even 
more  favorable  terms  than  the  catalogues  would  indicate.  I 
do  not  claim  that  Southern  institutions  have  not  been  making 
progress.  They  have  been  striving  very  earnestly  in  many  di- 
rections. They  are  now  engaged  in  a  universal  and  vigorous 
endeavor  to  secure  larger  resources,  more  money  for  endow- 
ment, more  buildings  and  better  equipment.  This  is  all  well 
enough;  but  it  is  not  well  enough  that  they  are  now  and  have 
been  for  many  years  engaged  in  a  wild  strife  for  numbers. 
This  has  been  the  goal  of  ambition  on  the  part  of  trustees  and 


JAMES    H.    KIK.KLAND  175 

faculty  and  students.  A  steady  increase  in  numbers  has  been  ad- 
vanced as  proof  of  healthy  growth  in  every  particular.  This 
is  made  the  basis  for  petitions  to  Legislatures  for  larger  ap- 
propriations, for  movements  for  endowment,  and  for  appeals 
to  philanthropists.  In  order  to  secure  this  increase  in  num- 
bers, educational  standards  have  sometimes  been  thrown  away 
and  genuine  work  has  been  too  often  sacrificed.  It  is  with  great 
satisfaction  that  one  contemplates  the  action  of  the  Carnegie 
Foundation  for  the  Advancement  of  Teaching.  It  is  well  that 
this  corporation  has  been  transformed  from  a  charitable  or 
philanthropic  enterprise  into  an  educational  one,  and  that  it 
purposes  to  use  its  influence  in  the  establishment  of  sound  and 
satisfactory  standards  for  college  work.  It  is  quite  likely  that 
the  position  taken  by  the  Carnegie  Foundation  will  be  epoch- 
making,  and  we  shall  doubtless  see  a  universal  rating  of  edu- 
cational institutions  in  terms  fixed  by  this  Board.  So  far  as 
the  present  question  of  admission  requirements  is  concerned, 
the  Carnegie  Board  has  determined  that  these  requirements 
must  include  four  years  of  high  school  work,  and  this  work 
has  been  expressed  by  them  in  fourteen  units,  each  unit  sup- 
posed to  be  one  year  of  high  school  work  with  five  daily  recita- 
tions per  week.  It  will  be  seen,  then,  that  an  institution  whose 
requirements  for  admission  cover  only  ten  units  admits  high 
school  students  with  one  year  less  than  the  full  amount,  while 
six  or  seven  units  means  only  half  the  high  school  course. 
May  we  not  commend  this  action  of  the  Carnegie  Board  to  the 
General  Board  of  Education?  At  the  risk  of  seeming  to  be 
presumptuous,  I  venture  to  suggest  that  the  General  Board 
could  revolutionize  Southern  college  standards  by  the  adoption 
of  similar  principles.  It  may  be  well  in  some  cases  to  require 
an  institution  to  raise  additional  money  in  order  to  secure  as- 
sistance from  the  General  Board.  Would  it  not,  in  other  cases, 
be  quite  as  desirable  to  require  such  an  institution  to  meet 
educational  requirements  rather  than  financial,  to  make  advance 
in  curriculum  rather  than  erect  a  new  dormitory,  to  have  a 
better  institution  rather  than  a  larger  one? 

I  give  herewith  an  interpretation  of  the  admission   require- 
ments of  four  institutions  selected  from  among  those  to  whom 


176  HIGH   SCHOOL  AND   UNIVERSITY 

assistance  has  been  given  or  promised  by  the  General  Board.  I 
take  these  institutions  because  the  stamp  of  approval  01  the 
General  Board  is  significant.  It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  these 
are  worthy  institutions,  among  the  best  in  their  sections.  One 
of  them,  for  instance,  requires  for  admission  5£  units,  but  all 
students  taking  a  degree  will  have  also  to  present  Latin,  which 
will  bring  the  admission  requirements  up  to  8|  units.  Another 
institution  requires  5£  units  for  admission,  and  freely  allows 
such  a  student  to  take  any  degree  of  the  university.  Neither 
Latin  nor  Greek  being  required  for  a  degree,  a  student  who 
enters  on  5^  units  can  proceed  and  finish  his  course  without 
any  further  concern  so  far  as  entrance  requirements  go.  An- 
other institution  requires  for  admission  to  the  B.  S.  course  6£ 
units,  and  for  admission  to  the  B.  A.  course  7£  units.  A  fourth 
institution  requires  for  admission  to  one  degree  course  7£  units, 
to  another  degree  course  6|  units,  and  to  another  degree  course 
5£  units.  I  beg  to  emphasize  the  point  already  made  that  in 
these  illustrations  no  effort  has  been  made  to  find  low-grade 
institutions.  One  of  them  is  a  State  university;  all  of  them 
are  institutions  of  excellent  standing  and  well  thought  of  in 
the  South.  I  am  trying  to  show  how  universal  is  the  condition 
of  low  entrance  requirements  for  Southern  institutions. 

In  this  connection  it  is  instructive  to  note  the  experience  of 
the  Association  of  College  and  Preparatory  Schools  of  the 
Southern  States.  This  Association  is  now  thirteen  years  old. 
It  was  formed  as  a  union  of  certain  institutions  willing  to 
pledge  themselves  to  the  adoption  of  a  few  definite  educational 
reforms.  These  were:  first,  the  abandonment  of  preparatory 
classes;  second,  the  holding  of  written  entrance  examinations; 
third,  the  establishment  of  a  fair  grade  of  entrance  require- 
ments. The  entrance  requirements  agreed  to  have  been  and  are 
still  much  lower  than  they  ought  to  be.  An  irregular  student 
may  be  admitted  to  college  on  5£  units  of  high  school  work, 
but  all  candidates  for  degrees  are  supposed  to  stand  entrance 
examinations  covering  10J  units  of  work.  At  the  time  of  the 
establishment  of  this  Association  there  were  only  six  institu- 
tions willing  to  enter  into  this  agreement.  In  the  thirteen 
years  of  its  history  we  have  added  twelve  other  institutions  to 


JAMES    H.    KLRJCLAJSTD  Lti 

our  membership.  Of  course,  we  have  always  had  the  support 
of  a  large  number  of  preparatory  schools.  There  are  still  to- 
day in  the  South  States  in  which  no  institution  is  willing  or 
able  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  Southern  College  Associa- 
tion. It  is  also  charged — frankness  compels  me  to  say — that  the 
institutions  retaining  membership  do  not  always  strictly  obey 
the  requirements  of  the  Association. 

The  question  forces  itself  upon  us,  whether  these  low  stand- 
ards of  work  are  necessary,  whether  there  is  any  peculiar  in- 
stitution or  peculiar  atmosphere  in  the  South  that  makes  it 
impossible  for  Southern  colleges  to  elevate  their  freshman  class 
above  the  second  or  third  year  of  the  public  high  school.  I 
am  quite  familiar  with  all  arguments  that  are  advanced  in 
favor  of  low  requirements  and  preparatory  classes.  I  am  well 
aware  of  the  historical  explanation  of  our  Condition.  I  have 
lived  through  all  the  phases  of  Southern  educational  work  from 
the  time  of  the  Civil  War  until  to-day.  The  claim  I  make  is 
not  that  we  should  have  come  by  any  other  and  different  road, 
but  that  we  should  have  moved  faster  than  we  have  moved  and 
that  we  could  be  moving  to-day  where  in  many  cases  we  are 
sitting  still  and  resting  or  sleeping.  I  do  claim  that  the  present 
low  standard  of  Southern  requirements  is  not  necessary.  We 
could  do  better  than  we  are  doing.  One  of  the  greatest  needs 
in  the  South  to-day  is  for  a  score  of  colleges  and  universities 
to  stand  forth  in  a  body  and  enforce  standards  of  admission 
and  of  work  such  as  I  have  been  describing,  equal  in  all  re- 
spects to  the  standards  enforced  by  the  best  institutions  of  the 
North,  the  East  and  the  West.  Many  of  our  State  universities 
are  able  to  take  this  position.  It  is  not  true  that  their  support 
would  be  cut  off  in  consequence  of  such  a  movement.  It  is  the 
duty  of  State  universities  to  educate  Legislatures,  to  advocate 
what  is  right  and  true,  and  to  lead  in  sound  educational  progress. 
If  we  wait  until  we  are  all  rich,  have  all  the  buildings  we  want, 
all  the  endowment  we  want,  and  all  the  students  we  want,  it  is 
perfectly  clear  that  our  educational  salvation  will  be  postponed 
to  that  happy  day  when  knowledge  shall  have  vanished  away. 

Heretofore  I  have  been  speaking  of  the  better  class  of  colleges 
and  universities.  We  must  not  forget,  however,  that  for  one 


178  HIGH  SCHOOL  AND   UNIVERSITY 

such  institution  there  are  half  a  dozen  low-grade  institutions 
in  the  South,  whose  standard  falls  still  lower  than  has  been 
described,  and  the  question  remains,  what  can  be  done  with 
these?  Is  there  no  hope  for  such  institutions?  Are  there  any 
influences  that  can  be  brought  to  bear  either  for  their  ameliora- 
tion, conversion  or  annihilation?  So  far  as  these  institutions 
.are  honorable  in  birth  and  origin  and  honest  in  work,  it  is  not 
impossible  to  find  a  valuable  field  for  them  to  occupy.  Such 
institutions  should  be  constituted  as  junior  colleges ;  that  is,  col- 
leges giving  a  thorough  high  school  course  and  adding  to  it  the 
freshman  and  perhaps  the  sophomore  years.  For  this  work 
large  libraries  and  extensive  laboratories  are  not  required. 
Most  of  the  work  is  done  in  English,  mathematics  and  the  lan- 
guages. Teachers  of  supreme  ability  are,  however,  an  absolute 
necessity.  Such  work  ought  not  to  be  rewarded  with  the  ordi- 
nary baccalaureate  degrees,  but  could  be  rewarded  with  diplomas 
or  certificates.  Many  of  these  institutions  are  denominational 
in  character,  and  can  be  reached  through  denominational 
agencies.  Church  colleges  ought  to  respond  speedily  to  any  gen- 
eral movement  for  honest  work  and  honest  name.  In  some  of 
the  churches  educational  interests  are  pat  in  charge  of  con- 
nectional  boards  having  oversight  over  ail  the  work  of  the 
whole  denomination.  This  removes  these  questions  from  the 
narrowness  of  local  control  and  enables  a  church  to  establish 
a  general  system  and  a  universal  standard.  Such  conditions 
are  hopeful,  and  indicate  the  possibility  of  the  reforms  that 
we  have  advocated.  But  there  are  other  institutions  of  the 
same  character,  low  in  standard  and  in  work,  that  are  purely 
private  and  commercial  institutions,  founded  for  making  money, 
carried  on  by  intellectual  charlatans.  Such  institutions  are  pre- 
tentious in  name  in  inverse  proportion  to  real  merit.  They 
claim  all  the  virtues,  both  educational  and  ethical.  I  see  noth- 
ing to  be  done  with  such  institutions  excepr  openly  and  relent- 
lessly to  wage  war  against  them.  In  the  final  issue  the  State 
ought  to  come  to  the  attack.  The  work  of  these  institutions  is 
essentially  immoral  in  practice  and  in  character,  and  the  State 
ought  to  withhold  its  charters  from  all  such  enterprises.  The 
power  of  granting  degrees  ought  to  be  so  hedged  about  as  to 


JAMES    II.    KIRKLAXB  179 

preserve  the  value  of  these  degrees  and  to  make  impossible  the 
existence  of  fraudulent  educational  enterprises.  Selling  de- 
grees is  a  crime  that  has  been  punished  by  our  courts,  but  it 
is  no  less  a  crime  to  sell  or  give  away  educational  degrees  with- 
out any  attempt  to  maintain  honest  standards.  Any  group  of 
persons  so  desiring,  in  almost  any  State,  without  an  acre  of 
land  or  a  building  or  a  dollar's  worth  of  property,  can  secure 
a  charter  authorizing  them  to  confer  all  nterary  and  profes- 
sional degrees.  Boom  towns  have  started  universities  as  an 
advertisement.  Churches  have  begun  enterprises  to  spite  other 
churches  or  to  pre-occupy  a  promising  field.  Over  and  ever 
again  have  I  come  in  contact  with  lives  that  have  been  marred 
and  almost  ruined  by  the  work  of  such  institutions.  This  work 
is  not  worthless  because  it  is  of  low  grade;  it  is  worthless  be- 
cause it  is  dishonest  in  practice,  in  spirit  and  in  name.  To  make 
shoddy  is  as  honorable  as  to  make  broadcloth,  and  far  more 
necessary;  but  to  make  shoddy  and  call  it  broadcloth,  and 
sell  it  at  two  dollars  per  yard,  ought  to  land  a  man  in  the 
penitentiary.  Such  a  condition  of  affairs  is  worthy  the  con- 
sideration of  every  State  through  its  governing  bodies.  If  the 
State  needs  to  lend  its  strong  arm  to  save  its  citizens  from 
impure  food,  from  low-standard  coal  oil  and  low-grade  fer- 
tilizers, it  can  also  afford  to  protect  them  from  imposition  and 
deceit  in  that  higher  realm  where  soul  life  is  quickened  and 
the  light  of  truth  should  ever  burn  pure  and  bright. 

In  concluding  this  discussion,  I  ask  permission  to  cite  the 
experience  of  one  Southern  institution  in  dealing  with  the  vari- 
ous matters  that  have  been  considered.  The  institution  in 
question  opened  its  doors  just  thirty  years  ago.  In  the  begin- 
ning no  preparation  was  made  for  preparatory  students,  and 
fair  and  reasonable  admission  requirements  were  fixed;  but 
with  the  first  session,  a  crowd  of  earnest  and  untrained  students 
poured  into  the  college  halls.  A  large  number  of  courses  that 
had  been  provided  was  found  to  be  unsuited  and  uncalled  for, 
while  there  was  found  to  be  an  eager  demand  for  elementary 
work  in  English,  mathematics,  Latin,  and  Greek.  The  institu- 
tion, therefore,  found  itself  compelled  to  begin  preparatory 
classes,  for  it  was  not  considered  feasible  to  reject  two-thirds  of 


180  HIGH    SCHOOL   AND    UNIVERSITY 

those  who  presented  themselves  for  matriciilation  in  the  first 
year.  These  preparatory  classes  were  conducted  for  twelve 
years  under  protest.  They  were  not  advertised,  and  no  effort 
was  made  to  secure  students  for  them.  In  1887  steps  were 
taken  looking  to  the  abolition  of  these  classes,  which  was  ac- 
complished in  the  next  two  years.  The  attendance  of  the  in- 
stitution fell  from  188  to  112,  a  loss  of  40  per  cent.  There  was 
from  the  very  beginning,  however,  a  great  improvement  in  the 
character  of  the  student  body.  Instead  of  a  mass  of  raw  ma- 
terial, unprepared  for  college  life  and  college  duties,  uncertain 
as  to  plans  and  purposes  educationally,  there  was  a  homogeneous 
band,  earnest  and  enthusiastic,  with  high  aspirations  and  ideals. 
Every  student  seemed  to  feel  the  change.  There  was  an  in- 
crease of  intellectuality  in  the  very  atmosphere.  The  higher 
classes  began  to  grow  larger,  graduate  work  was  developed,  and 
every  part  of  the  college  organization  was  keyed  to  a  higher 
tone.  Numbers  began  to  increase  steadily  and  training  schools 
sprang  up  as  legitimate  feeders  for  the  university.  Within  four 
years  the  attendance  had  regained  its  normal  point,  and  from 
that  time  continued  to  show  slow  increase.  Requirements  for 
admission  were  raised  from  time  to  time,  and  requirements  for 
graduation  were  kept  on  a  constant  high  plane.  A  marked 
difference  was  exhibited  almost  immediately  in  the  number  of 
graduates.  For  the  six  years  preceding  the  abolition  of  pre- 
paratory classes  the  average  attendance  of  the  academic  de- 
partment was  188.5  and  the  average  number  of  graduates  was 
8.3,  or  one  graduate  to  every  22.5  students.  For  the  first  six 
years  under  the  new  system,  without  preparatory  classes,  the 
average  attendance  was  185.5,  while  the  average  number  of 
graduates  was  22.5,  or  one  graduate  to  everv  8.3  students.  For 
the  last  six  years,  closing  with  the  year  1906,  the  average  at- 
tendance in  the  academic  department  has  been  228  students 
and  the  average  number  of  graduates  38.8,  or  one  graduate  to 
every  5.8  students.  These  figures  indicate  more  strongly  than 
any  words  can  do  the  change  in  the  character  of  the  student 
body.  More  important  still  is  the  result  that  has  been  accom- 
plished for  the  general  cause  of  education  through  the  estab- 
lishment of  training  schools  designed  to  prepare  students  for 


JAMES    H.    KIRKLAXD  18] 

this  institution  and  others  like  it.  In  the  fall  of  1903  seventy- 
five  students  entered  the  university  in  question  from  schools 
more  or  less  directly  affiliated  with  it.  Within  the  past  ten 
years  ten  schools  have  furnished  the  freshman  class  with  more 
than  five  hundred  students,  an  average  of  more  than  fifty  stu- 
dents per  year.  It  must  be  remembered  also  that  these  train- 
ing schools  have  exercised,  and  still  exercise,  a  great  influence 
over  the  lives  of  many  students  who  never  reached  college.  Per- 
haps not  one-fifth  of  the  number  that  attend  such  schools  in 
the  first  year  of  their  course  finally  complete  the  curriculum 
and  enter  the  university,  but  the  influence  of  the  training  school 
on  these  lives  is  of  incalculable  benefit.  Such  is  the  experience 
of  one  institution,  and  I  believe  that  it  has  a  valuable  lesson 
for  the  whole  South.  What  has  been  done  in  one  case  can  be 
done  in  many  others.  To  the  writer  of  this  paper  it  is  a  matter 
of  sincere  and  pardonable  pride  that  he  has  been  permitted  to 
take  some  part,  however  small,  in  the  work  thus  described. 


THIRD  DAY,  THURSDAY,  APRIL  11th 

DR.  WALLACE  BUTTRICK  IN  THE  CHAIR. 
The  Conference  was  called  to  order  at  10  o'clock. 

At  the  call  for  the  report  of  the  Committee  on  Nominations, 
Superintendent  J.  Y.  Joyner,  the  Chairman  of  this  Committee, 
presented  the  following  names  for  election  to  the  offices  of  the 
Conference  for  the  ensuing  year,  and  the  report  was  adopted : 

President— Robert  C.  Ogden,  of  New  York. 

Vice-President— J.  Gunby  Jordan,  of  Columbus,  Ga. 

Secretary— Benjamin  J.  Baldwin,  of  Montgomery,  Ala. 

Treasurer— William  A.  Blair,  of  Winston-Salem,  N.  C. 

Executive  Committee— S.  C.  Mitchell,  of  Richmond,  Va. ;  W. 
H.  Hand,  of  Columbia,  S.  C. ;  Seymour  A.  Mynders,  of  Knox- 
ville,  Tenn. ;  George  J.  Ramsey,  of  Lexington,  Ky. ;  Harry  Hodg- 
son, of  Athens,  Ga. ;  Paul  H.  Saunders,  of  Laurel,  Miss. ;  Erwin 
Craighead,  of  Mobile,  Ala. ;  James  H.  Dillard.  of  New  Orleans, 
La. ;  John  H.  Hinemon,  of  Arkadelphia,  Ark. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  George  Foster  Peabody,  it  was  voted  that 
the  Conference  recommend  to  the  Executive  Committee  the  de- 
sirability of  holding,  in  the  future,  two  out  of  three  of  the  An- 
nual Conferences  at  Pinehurst,  or  in  some  other  place  with  simi- 
lar hotel  accommodations. 

The  Chairman  then  announced  the  topic  of  discussion  for 
the  morning  session,  and  introduced  as  the  first  speaker  Dr. 
Seaman  A.  Knapp,  of  Lake  Charles,  La.,  Special  Agent  of  the 
United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 


SEAM  AX    A.    KXAPP  183 

IMPROVED  CONDITIONS  FOR  THE  SOUTHERN 
FARMER. 

SEAMAN  A.  KNAPP. 

In  discussing  this  topic,  it  is  necessary  to  arrive  at  a  just 
estimate  of  present  conditions  in  our  Southern  rural  districts. 

Some  years  since  a  traveler  said  that  the  farms  of  the  South 
looked  like  a  bankrupt  stock  ready  for  the  auctioneer;  the  soils 
were  impoverished;  the  brush  and  briar  patches  conspicuous; 
the  buildings  dilapidated;  the  fences  a  makeshift;  the  highways 
but  little  more  than  much-used  bridle  paths;  the  churches  and 
school-houses  were  built  upon  the  plan  of  inclosing  the  necessary 
space  at  the  least  expense;  and  the  graveyards  appeared  as  if 
the  living  did  not  believe  in  the  resurrection. 

This  viewpoint  is  not  mine.  To  me  the  Southern  States 
surpass  all  of  the  countries  of  the  earth  of  equal  area  in  ma- 
terial resources,  mainly  undeveloped.  Underneath  almost  every 
acre  is  concealed  a  mineral  wealth  of  surpassing  value;  within 
almost  every  acre  are  agricultural  resources  that,  touched  by 
intellect  and  labor,  will  reveal  marvelous  products.  To  me  the 
Southern  people  are  the  purest  stock  of  the  greatest  race  the 
world  has  produced.  The  rural  population  has  lived  under  un- 
fortunate conditions  for  the  best. development,  but  the  essential 
material  of  their  natures  is  not  impaired  and  it  requires  but  lead- 
ership to  attain  great  results.  "Scratch  a  Philippino  and  you 
may  uncover  a  Malay";  scratch  a  poor  while  of  the  South  and 
you  reveal  a  hero.  Great  gains  have  already  been  made  and 
greater  are  yet  to  come.  There  are  some  retarding  conditions. 
What  are  they?  The  following  are  a  few  of  the  most  important: 

1st.  In  the  older  States  of  the  South  the  annual  product 
per  acre  has  greatly  decreased  owing  to  the  rapid  loss  of  soil 
fertility;  and  moderate  production  is  only  maintained  at  in- 
creased cost,  Even  comparatively  new  States,  like  Texas,  indi- 
cate rapid  loss  of  fertility. 

2nd.  Within  the  last  half  century  vast  areas  of  virgin  prairie 
soils  have  been  opened  for  settlement  by  the  construction  of 
railway  lines  and  have  attracted  many  front  the  older  States. 


184  SOUTHERN    FARMER 

Economic  and  rapid  transportation  are  equalizing  the  land  values, 
of  the  world,  depressing  them  in  older  and  more  populous  sec- 
tions and  rapidly  enhancing  values  in  the  newer.  This  is  true 
in  Virginia,  in  New  York,  in  England  and  elsewhere. 

3rd.  The  large  body  of  freedmen  settled  throughout  the  rural 
districts  of  the  South  has  tended  to  lower  farm  values  and  de- 
press agriculture.  I  am  not  claiming  that  they  intentionally 
do  this  or  are  morally  responsible  for  the  effect.  The  effect  is 
not  the  result  of  color,  but  is  caused  by  lower  planes  of  living. 
I  simply  mention  it  as  a  factor. 

4th.  The  poverty  of  the  laboring  whites  should  be  taken  into 
account.  It  takes  resources  to  build  and  maintain  a  high  civil- 
ization. If  the  poor  whites  and  the  colored  people,  constitut- 
ing nine-tenths  of  the  country  population,  do  not  have  means  to 
buy  farms,  nor  improve  them,  nor  purchase  equipment,  nor 
to  pay  current  expenses,  country  conditions  must  fall  to  a  low 
level.  Considerable  of  this  is  due  to  the  war  between  the  States, 
which  financially  ruined  the  South.  It  takes  a  long  time  for  the 
people  to  recover  from  sweeping  disasters,  and  it  takes  longer 
when  nine-tenths  of  them  have  but  slight  knowledge  of  thrift. 

5th.  The  credit  system  has  been  a  potent  factor  in  depress- 
ing agriculture.  To  some  extent  it  might  have  been  a  neces- 
sary evil  in  a  limited  way,  forty  years  ago;  but  it  prospered 
and  became  dominant,  oppressive  and  insolent.  It  unblush- 
ingly  swept  the  earnings  of  toil  from  the  masses  into  the  coffers 
of  the  few.  It  substituted  voluntary  for  involuntary  servitude, 
ownership  by  agreement  and  poverty  by  contract  under  fear  of 
the  sheriff,  for  the  ownership  by  birthright  and  a  government 
by  proprietary  right.  So  we  have  lived  under  a  slavery  where 
the  chains  are  ingeniously  forged  and  the  bands  riveted  with 
gold.  It  is  all  the  same  in  effect,  the  impoverishment  of  the 
masses. 

6th.  Evolution  in  manufactures  has  wielded  a  mighty  in- 
fluence against  the  general  development  of  the  country.  Sixty 
years  ago  most  of  our  mechanics  lived  in  the  country  upon 
small  farms,  which  they  and  their  families  tilled  for  support, 
and  they  sold  their  surplus  labor  to  supplement  the  home  in- 
come. People  were  honest  and  thrifty,  because  all  were  em- 


SEAMAN    A.    KXAPP  185 

ployed;  to-day  these  mechanic  farmers  reside  in  town  or  city, 
sell  all  their  labor  and  live  out  of  a  canned  garden  and  milk  a. 
tin  cow ;  of  course  their  sons  and  daughters  are  idle. 

7th.  To  foster  the  mechanic  arts  we  have  levied  a  duty  upon 
the  farmers,  thereby  destroying  competition  and  increasing  the 
cost  of  what  they  purchase  about  fifty  per  cent.  This  with  the 
marvelous  improvements  in  machinery  and  mechanical  power 
has  given  the  mechanic  an  earning  capacity  (as  shown  by  the 
last  census)  of  from  four  to  six  times  that  of  the  average  farmer. 
This  is  the  main  magnet  which  attracts  the  best  youth  from  the 
farms  and  deprives  the  rural  districts  of  their  rightful  leaders. 

8th.  To  cap  the  climax  of  depressing  influences  most  of  the 
money  of  the  country  has  been  diverted  into  commercial  chan- 
nels through  the  banking  laws.  In  olden  time  there  were  men 
in  the  country  who  loaned  money  to  farmers ;  later  all  such  funds 
have  been  absorbed  by  banks,  until  banks  directly  and  indirectly 
control  the  money  of  the  country.  Farmers  can  deposit  in  a 
bank;  but  they  cannot  borrow  from  that  bank,  even  their  own 
money,  to  make  a  crop.  It  requires  at  least  six  months  to  make 
and  market  an  average  crop  upon  a  farm.  Banks  can  loan 
only  for  ninety  days.  Suppose  all  of  the  deposits  of  a  village 
bank  were  made  by  farmers,  that  money  must  be  loaned  upon 
short  time  and  hence  is  not  available  for  crop-raising  to  any 
extent.  Thus  the  banking  capital  of  our  country,  a  considerable 
portion  of  which  belongs  to  farmers,  has  not  promoted  agricul- 
ture; but  has  stimulated  commercialism  and  by  its  concentra- 
tion in  cities  has  fostered  gambling  in  stocks.  The  great  fluctu- 
ation in  the  values  of  farms  and  farm  products  lies  in  the  fact 
that  the  money  of  the  country  is  not  backing  them.  It  has 
tjeen  loaned  to  the  merchant,  the  manufacturer  and  the  speculat- 
ing interests.  This  is  not  intended  as  an  argument  against 
banks.  Banks  are  a  necessity.  The  criticism  holds  against  a 
phase  of  our  banking  laws,  which  by  process  of  law  diverts 
the  money  of  farmers  into  commercial  channels. 

This  backward  condition  of  the  country  as  compared  with 
the  city  is  not  a  new  problem.  It  dates  from  the  earliest  his- 
torical periods.  Many  of  the  words  of  reproach  or  opprobrium 
in  the  English  language  were  the  designation  of  farmers,  in  the 


186  SOUTHERN   FARMER 

several  languages  from  which  they  were  derived,  such  as  villain, 
.heathen,  clown  and  boor.  While  rural  conditions  were  such  as 
these  names  indicate,  the  weavers  of  Bruges  and  the  train- 
bands of  London  were  winning  victories  for  liberty. 

Every  effort  to  improve  the  country  has  been  more  or  less 
of  an  uplift.  When  manufacturers  were  established  in  the  vil- 
lages of  England  and  in  New  England  an  important  step  was 
taken  in  economic  production.  It  helped  the  marketing  of 
farm  products  and  gave  employment  to  the  surplus  labor  of 
the  country.  This  should  still  be  the  policy  of  manufacturers, 
if  the  most  economic  production  is  sought.  These  villages  were 
a  social  as  well  as  an  economic  gain. 

The  establishment  of  country  schools  was  another  advance. 
They  had  been  far  from  perfect  and  possibly  should  be  modified 
to  meet  present  conditions;  but  they  have  been  an  inspiration 
to  thousands  who  lived  remote  from  urban  refinement.  They 
were  expensive,  but  infinitely  cheap  as  compared  with  the  bar- 
barism of  ignorance. 

Another  advance  of  the  country  was  the  establishment  of 
Agricultural  Colleges.  These  democratic  institutions  attracted 
the  sons  of  farmers  by  their  gospel  of  labor  and  the  introduction 
•of  studies  helpful  in  vocations  of  toil. 

It  was  hoped,  and  by  many  expected,  that  the  graduates 
of  these  colleges  would  return  to  the  country,  become  captains 
of  rural  industries  and  revolutionize  conditions.  This  did  not 
occur,  but  good  was  done.  Thousands  of  the  under-graduates 
are  upon  the  farms.  Many  of  these  colleges  have  established 
short  courses  for  the  tillers  of  the  soil.  Farmers'  Institutes 
have  been  organized  to  carry  agricultural  knowledge  to  the 
scattered  homes  in  the  country  and  deliver  it  orally.  They 
have  fostered  investigations  along  agricultural  lines  and  they 
keep  the  necessity  of  more  agricultural  knowledge  as  a  live  issue 
before  the  people. 

Another  class  of  reformers  is  prescribing  "Diversification  of 
Farm  Products,"  as  a  remedy.  Diversifying  is  a  great  aid  to 
success  in  agriculture,  under  certain  conditions;  but  how  can 
the  man  who  has  nothing  diversify?  He  cannot  go  into  dairy- 
ing nor  stock  fanning  because  he  cannot  buy  the  fraction  of  a 


SEAMAN    A.    KNAPP  1°  i 

cow  or  a  pig.  He  cannot  plant  new  crops,  because  the  merchant 
regards  the  move  as  an  experiment,  and  he  will  not  advance  on 
an  experiment.  The  only  way  such  farmers  can  prosper  is  by 
remaining  in  the  old  rut  and  improving  the  rut. 

Other  advocates  of  reform  are  clamoring  for  improvement 
of  rural  conditions— better  homes,  passable  ^highways,  free  de- 
livery of  mails,  etc.  These  are  excellent  suggestions;  but  they 
do  not  reach  the  main  difficulty,  which  is  the  lack  of  means  to 
do  anything. 

I  once  heard  a  poor  tenant  farmer  complain  that  he  could 
not  make  a  living  farming ;  a  passing  stranger  remarked,  ' '  Why 
don't  you  quit  farming,  if  there  is  no  money  in  it,  and  go  to 
banking?"  "Mister!"  replied  the  poor  man.  "I  don't  know 
whether  you  are  insane  or  an  idiot.  It  sounds  like  both."  To 
men  on  the  farm  hunting  for  a  breakfast,  considerable  of  the 
advice  sounds  like  both. 

There  is  another  remedy  for  the  country,  very  popular  just 
now,  and  that  is  the  teaching  of  agriculture  in  the  common 
schools.  Properlv  defined  and  understood,  there  is  a  certain 
amount  of  helpfulness  in  it.  However,  i£  taught  universally 
in  the  country  schools,  no  sweeping  revolution  will  result,  for 
the  following  reasons : 

1st.  Agriculture  is  not  a  science  and  it  has  but  little  science 
in  it.  That  little  science  can  be  taught.  The  remainder  must 
be  acquired  by  observation,  experience  and  business  methods. 
Some  instruction  may  be  given  in  soils,  in  plant  classification, 
in  the  way  plants  feed  and  grow  and  are  propagated,  in  insect 
and  bird  life  and  in  animal  structure  and  requirements.  These 
may  go  into  secondary  schools  in  a  limited  way.  It  appears 
to  me  impracticable  to  introduce  them  generally  into  the  rural 
common  schools,  as  they  are  now  organized ;  at  least  till  teach- 
ers are  trained  to  instruct.  If  these  schools  can  be  consolidated 
into  township  schools,  properly  graded,  it  will  then  be  possible 
to  introduce  some  object  lessons  and  primary  instruction  in 
nature  studies.  In  the  common  country  schools,  it  is  at  present 
unwise  to  attempt  much  looking  to  agriculture  beyond  object 
lessons.  These  are  always  valuable,  and  oral  instruction  should 
be  sriven  with  them. 


188  SOUTHERN    FARMER 

It  is  estimated  that  there  is  a  possible  gain  of  five  fold  in 
the  earning  capacity  ol  each  f arm  laborer  above  his  present 
income.  Practically  the  whole  gain  is  due  to  the  following 
plan:  fill  the  soil  with  humus;  prepare  a  deeper  and  more 
thoroughly  pulverized  seed  bed;  better  seed;  proper  fertiliza- 
tion; more  cultivation;  the  use  of  stronger  teams;  better  ma- 
chinery and  tools;  and  utilize  the  idle  lands  by  grazing.  Four- 
fifths  of  the  gain  is  in  the  economic  use  of  better  teams  and 
tools  and  the  introduction  of  animal  husbandry.  A  majority 
of  our  common  school  teachers  are  women,  ignorant  of  practical 
agriculture,  but  no  more  so  than  sixty  per  cent,  of  the  male 
teachers.  How  are  such  teachers  to  instruct  in  these  branches, 
which  requires  a  farm  fully  equipped,  and  practical  experience? 

I  have  been  talking  about  common  schools.  In  our  portion 
of  the  United  States  there  are  no  common  schools.  They  are 
most  extraordinary  schools.  The  children  are  given  science 
lessons,  language  lessons,  social  economy,  French,  Latin,  draw- 
ing, vocal  and  piano  music,  etc.  Possibly  later  they  may  learn 
to  read  and  spell.  I  asked  the  patron  of  one  school  how  the 
pupils  progressed  in  Latin.  He  replied,  "Very  well  indeed. 
The  only  difficulty  is  that  they  are  required  to  write  their  trans- 
lations in  English  and  they  do  not  know  how  to  write  Eng- 
lish." 

Let  us  drop  this  farce.  The  need  in  common  schools  is  for 
thorough  training  in  the  fundamental  English  branches.  If 
there  is  time  for  more,  let  the  boys  study  book-keeping  and 
business  methods.  If  still  there  be  room,  introduce  nature 
studies  and  object  lessons.  Let  the  girls  take  for  higher  branches 
the  lost  science  of  cooking,  housekeeping  and  physiology.  I  am 
asking  for  a  substantial  foundation  upon  which  to  build  a  useful 
life  for  such  people  as  must  be  practical,  because  they  must  earn 
their  bread  by  toil.  For  people  of  means  and  with  love  of 
learning,  I  commend  a  life  of  study,  broad,  deep  and  thorough, 
well  rounded  by  extensive  travel  and  observation.  We  need 
great  scholars.  The  common  toiler  needs  an  education  that  leads 
to  easier  bread. 

In  the  centuries  the  American  people  have  been  at  work 
on  the  problems  of  rural  reform  some  progress  has  been  made, 


SEAM  AX    A.    KXAPP  189 

and  we  are  now  prepared  for  the  complete  accomplishment  of 
what  we  have  so  earnestly  sought,  the  placing  of  rural  life 
upon  a  plane  of  profit,  of  honor  and  power.  We  must  com- 
mence at  the  bottom  and  re-adjust  the  life  of  the  common 
people. 

1st.  By  increasing  the  earning  capacity  of  the  small  farmers. 
More  comfortable  homes,  better  schools,  improved  highways, 
telephones,  free  deliverey  of  mails  and  rural  libraries — all  re- 
quire money.  They  cannot  be  installed  and  maintained  without 
it;  hence  the  basis  of  the  better  rural  life  is  greater  earning  ca- 
pacity of  the  farmer.  Farm  renovation  and  maximum  crop 
production  are  now  fully  understood  and  they  can  be  explained 
and  illustrated  in  such  a  simple  and  practical  way  that  it  would 
be  a  crime  not  to  send  the  gospel  of  maximum  production  to  the 
rural  toiler.  It  is  said  by  some  that  the  farmers  are  a  hard  class 
to  reach  and  impress.  That  is  not  my  experience;  they  are  the 
most  tractable  of  people,  if  you  have  anything  substantial  to 
offer— but  they  all  want  proof.  They  do  not  take  kindly  to 
pure  theories,  and  no  class  can  more  quickly  discriminate  be- 
tween the  real  farmer  and  the  book  farmer  than  the  men  who  till 
the  soil.  The  message  to  the  farmers  must  be  practical,  and  of 
easy  application.  Who  shall  take  this  message'.1  Our  experience 
is  in  favor  of  farmers  of  fair  education  and  acknowledged  suc- 
cess on  the  farm.  They  may  ma'ke  mistakes,  from  a  scientific 
standpoint,  in  delivering  the  message,  but  these  are  easily  cor- 
rected. The  main  thing  is  to  induce  the  farmer  to  act;  and  no 
one  can  do  that  like  a  fellow  farmer.  Of  what  avail  is  it  that 
the  message  be  taken  by  a  man  of  science,  if  the  farmer  will  not 
give  heed?  In  general  it  is  not  the  man  who  knows  the  most 
who  is  the  most  successful ;  but  the  man  who  imparts  an  implicit 
belief  with  his  message.  The  greatest  failure  as  a  world  force 
is  the  man  who  knows  so  much  that  he  lives  in  universal  doubt, 
injecting  a  modifying  clause  into  every  assertion  and  ending  the 
problems  of  life  with  an  interrogation  point. 

The  process  of  changing  the  environment  of  a  farmer  is  like 
that  of  transforming  a  farm  boy  into  a  scholar.  First,  the 
farmer  is  selected  to  conduct  a  simple  and  inexpensive  demon- 
stration. Second,  a  contract  is  drawn  with  the  United  States 


190  SOUTHERN    FARMER 

Department  of  Agriculture  by  which  he  agrees  to  follow  certain 
instructions.  Third,  better  seed  is  furnished  him  and  his  name 
is  published  in  the  papers.  Fourth,  each  month  when  the  Gov- 
ernment's Field  Agent  goes  to  inspect  his  demonstration  many 
of  his  neighbors  are  invited;  consequently,  lie  will  almost  un- 
consciously improve  his  farm  so  as  to  be  ready  for  company 
and  cultivate  all  of  his  crops  better.  Fifth,  a  report  of  his 
extra  crop  is  made  in  the  county  papers.  His  neighbors  talk 
about  it  and  want  to  buy  seed.  Sixth,  he  sells  the  seed  of  his 
crop  at  a  high  price ;  his  neighbors  ask  him  how  he  produced  it ; 
he  is  invited  to  address  public  assemblies,  he  has  become  a  man 
of  note  and  a  leader  of  the  people  and  cannot  return  to  his  old 
ways.  Soon  there  is  a  body  of  such  men ;  a  township,  a  county 
and  finally  a  State  is  transformed.  The  power  which  trans- 
formed the  humble  fishermen  of  Galilee  into  mighty  apostles 
of  truth  is  ever  present  and  can  be  used  as  effectively  to-day, 
in  any  good  cause,  as  when  the  Son  of  God  turned  His  foot- 
steps from  Judea's  capital  and  spoke  to  the  way-side  children 
of  poverty. 

The  environment  of  men  must  be  penetrated  and  modified 
or  little  permanent  change^  can  be  made  in  them.  The  environ- 
ment of  the  farmer  is  limited  generally  to  a  few  miles.  The 
demonstration  must  be  carried  to  this  limited  area  and  show 
how  simple  and  easy  it  is  to  restore  the  virgin  fertility  of  the 
soil,  to  multiply  the  product  of  the  land  per  acre,  to  increase 
the  number  of  acres  each  laborer  can  till  by  three  or  four  fold, 
and  to  harvest  a  profit  from  untilled  fields  by  animal  husbandry. 
This  is  our  Farmers'  Co-operative  Demonstration  Work. 

The  second  step  in  rural  regeneration  is  the  establishment 
of  Agricultural  Banks,  through  which  reliable  men  may  be  as- 
sisted to  own  the  lands  they  till.  In  the  United  States  there 
are  over  two  million  of  rented  farms,  more  than  one-third  of 
the  total  number.  The  majority  of  theso  farmers  would  be- 
come owners  if  properly  encouraged  and  aided.  In  addition 
there  are  tens  of  thousands  of  mechanics  in  the  townfe  and 
cities,  who  were  raised  on  farms  and  would  return  to  the  country 
and  purchase  lands  for  homes,  if  slightly  assisted. 


SEAM  AX    A.    KNAPP  191 

Agricultural  Banks  should  be  established  to  assist  in  car- 
rying out  the  plan  of  colonizing  the  country  with  thrifty  home 
owners.  Furthermore,  it  is  equitable,  because  while  millions 
produced  by  the  farms  of  the  nation  have  by  the  process  of  bank- 
ing been  transferred  to  commerce,  no  way  has  oeen  provided, 
under  the  law,  by  which  the  money  of  the  people  can  be  used 
by  the  people  for  time  investments  in  providing  for  owner- 
ship of  rural  homes— the  royal  right  of  American  Sovereigns 
and  more  honorable  than  the  order  of  the  Garter  or  the  Golden 
Fleece. 

The  third  advance  in  the  great  uplift  of  rural  conditions 
consists  in  teaching  farmers'  wives  and  laughters  how  to  feed, 
clothe  and  doctor  their  families.  When  the  township  graded 
school  takes  the  place  of  the  scattered  district  schools,  it  will  be 
plain  how  to  accomplish  this  work  by  school  demonstrations. 

If  these  three  progressive  steps  be  taken,  the  rest  will  fol- 
low as  a  natural  evolution.  It  is  not  a  matter  of  pure  deduc- 
tion which  assures  me  that  the  farmers  will  make  their  homes 
more  comfortable  and  more  beautiful,  will  perfect  the  rural 
school  system,  will  construct  good  roads,  telephones  and  electric 
railways,  when  they  have  the  means  to  do  so.  Wherever  our 
Farmers'  Co-operative  Demonstration  Work  has  been  conducted 
long  enough  for  the  farmers  to  ge*t  out  of  debl ,  there  is  a  marked 
improvement  in  buildings  and  farm  equipment  to  do  good  work. 
The  farmers'  families  are  better  clothei  and  fed;  thrift  and 
comfort  have  appeared  in  places  formerly  as  destitute  of  these 
as  the  jungles  of  Africa. 

The  State  can  accelerate  the  progress  of  rural  improvement 
by  encouraging  good  works.  In  England  belter  highways  have 
been  promoted  by  a  law  which  provides  for  the  general  gov- 
ernment taking  charge  and  thereafter  maintaining  all  roads 
which  the  people  construct  and  improve  up  to  certain  excellence 
In  a  similar  way  the  State  could  encourage  the  building  of  the 
best  macadam  or  Roman  type  of  roads  by  offering  premiums 
for  every  mile  constructed  by  a  township  or  county,  and  import- 
ant highways  might  even  receive  national  aid.  Such  a  highway 
as  the  Spaniards  constructed  from  Ponce  to  San  Juan  is  worthy 
of  national  aid  and  is  more  valuable  to  the  country  than  a  rail- 


SOUTHERN   FARMER 

road  and  at  less  cost.  The  life  of  a  Roman  highway  is  more 
than  two  thousand  years.  Several  such  highways  should  bisect 
every  county  in  the  United  States  an,d  be  a  part  of  a  great 
national  road  system.  The  secondary  highways  will  of  course 
for  many  years  be  dirt  roads;  but  they  should  be  of  the  best 
type.  With  our  waterways  improved,  connecting  canals  con- 
structed, and  a  system  of  national  highways  developed,  the 
problem  of  transportation  will  be  largely  solved  and  an  immense 
impetus  given  to  better  country  conditions. 

In  a  similar  way  a  wise  governmental  policy  can  foster 
schools,  by  special  annual  appropriations  to  township  and  county 
graded  schools  of  a  certain  excellence.  Under  such  a  system 
a  high  school  fully  equipped  to  instruct  in  the  practical  branches 
required  for  successful  farm  life,  could  be  maintained  in  every 
county. 

Telephones  should  be  made  a  part  of  the  postal  system  and 
extended  through  the  farming  districts  of  the  United  States 
where  the  people  have  shown  ability  to  construct  and  maintain 
a  first-class  highway;  one-half  the  expense  of  installing  the 
telephone  to  be  borne  by  the  rural  route  and  a  rental  charge 
made,  as  for  post-office  boxes.  In  addition  there  should  be  a 
rural  express  on  every  highway  of  the  first  class.  Thus  a  farmer 
residing  ten  miles  from  his  market  town  could  maKe  an  order 
by  "Phone"  and  receive  the  package  by  express  in  a  short  time. 
By  the  same  conveyance  the  sons  and  daughters  of  the  farmers 
could  attend  a  central  high  school. 

Upon  this  general  plan,  and  no  other,  can  the  country  be- 
come what  it  should — a  home  making  place,  where  the  farmer 
will  reside  upon  his  farm.  The  mechanic  and  the  merchant 
wanting  more  space  for  their  homes,  will  choose  it  five  or  ten 
miles  in  the  country  and  professional  men  will  seek  rural  quiet 
and  rest.  Our  civic  centres  are  expanding  with  amazing  ra- 
pidity, not  because  men  love  brick  walls  and  electric  elevators, 
but  because  they  there  find  greater  earning  capacity  and  cer- 
tain conveniences  and  comforts,  which  have  become  a  neces- 
sity. Make  it  possible  to  have  all  of  these  amid  the  quiet  and 
beauties  of  nature,  with  rapid  transit  to  business  centres,  and 
vast  numbers  that  have  sought  an  urban  home  will  turn  to  the 


193 

country  for  a  home  at  less  cost  with  purer  air  and  water,  greater 
convenience  and  beauty,  cheaper  food  and  more  contentment. 

Let  it  be  the  high  privilege  of  this  great  and  free  people 
to  establish  a  republic  where  rural  pride  is  equal  to  civic  pride, 
where  men  of  the  most  refined  taste  and  culture  select  the 
rural  villa  and  where  the  wealth  that  comes  from  the  soil  finds 
its  greatest  return  in  developing  and  perfecting  that  great  do- 
main of  nature  which  God  has  given  to  us  as  an  everlasting 
estate. 

The  Chairman  then  introduced  Mr.  T.  0.  Sandy,  of  Farm- 
ville,  Va.,  who  presented  some  lessons  out  of  his  own  experi- 
ence. 

FAKM  IMPROVEMENT  IN  VIRGINIA. 

T.  0.  SANDY. 

Gentlemen:  I  am  not  here  to  make  a  speech ;  I  am  no  speaker. 
I  only  want  to  give  a  brief  outline  of  the  possibilities  of  our 
lands  in  Eastern  Virginia.  In  a  few  words  I  will  give  my  own 
experience.  I  started  out  on  one  of  the  poor,  worn-out  farms 
of  Nottoway  county,  Va.  This  land,  at  that  time,  could  not 
produce  more  than  five  bushels  of*  corn  to  the  acre,  wheat  about 
six  bushels,  and  grass  would  not  grow  at  all.  Only  the  bare 
fields  lay  before  me  and  if  such  a  thing  were  possible,  they 
would  have  cried  out  from  utter  exhaustion ;  like  a  worn-out  hu- 
man system  they  had  to  be  built  up.  I  had  no  capital  to  invest 
in  the  improvement  of  the  soil,  but  there  was  one  thing  I  did 
have — energy,  which,  in  my  opinion,  is  a  greater  blessing  than 
money.  Without  energy  riches  soon  take  wings  and  one  finds 
himself  at  the  starting  point.  I  own  it  was  a  gloomy  outlook, 
but  I  felt  something  could  and  must  be  accomplished,  and  I  set 
to  work,  with  a  determination  to  succeed  and  to  find  a  way 
to  make  those  fields  productive — in  other  words  to  make  them 
turn  green  and  cease  to  be  an  eyesore. 

To  live  in  the  country  and  to  have  to  gaze  over  barren  fields, 
winter  and  summer,  is  not  a  pleasant  occupation,  especially 


194  FARM    IMPROVEMENT 

when  one 's  only  source  of  living  is  found  in  what  the  land  brings 
forth.  I  had  to  find  out  what  this  land  needed,  and  after  work- 
ing, struggling  and  experimenting,  I  found  it  was  lime,  manure 
and  pure  raw  bone,  combined  with  thorough  cultivation.  Thi  n 
cows  were  bought  and  put  on  the  farm,  and  these  were  fed  a 
balanced  ration.  The  milk  was  run  through  a  separator,  morn- 
ing and  night,  the  skimmed  milk  fed  to  calves  and  pigs  .md  the 
cream  shipped  to  cities.  Cattle  must  be  kept  in  order  if  a  farm 
is  to  be  kept  up  to  a  high  state  of  fertility.  My  cattle,  which  are 
HoLsteins,  aside  from  the  value  of  the  manure  made,  have  been 
a  source  of  great  profit.  I  averaged,  last  year,  $125  per  cow. 
The  farm  under  this  management  soon  commenced  to  pay.  In 
five  years  I  was  making  40  bushels  of  corn  and  two  tons  of  nay 
to  the  acre.  This  line  of  work  was  kept  up,  and  now,  in  twelve 
years,  I  am  harvesting  from  75  to  80  bushels  of  corn  to  the 
acre  and  last  year  cut  from  four  to  five  and  a  half  tons  of  hay 
to  the  acre. 

We  all  know  the  necessity  of  similar  work  in  Eastern  Virginia. 
All  of  this  land  can  be  utilized  in  the  same  way,  and  its  occu- 
pants, by  such  methods  as  I  have  outlined,  can  improve  their 
farms,  educate  their  children  and  lay  by  something  for  a  rainy 
day.  Old  Virginia  would  bloom  and  blossom  like  a  rose  if  we 
only  could  get  our  people  to  wake  up  and  get  out  of  the  old 
bottomless  ruts. 

Now  we  want  to  know  the  practical  method  of  doing  tlw,. 
This  requires  a  great  deal  of  thought.  The  way  which  has  been 
adopted  is  this:  I  have  in  charge  twenty  Demonstration  fanns 
within  forty  miles  of  my  home,  Burkeville.  At  each  station  two 
of  these  are  located.  I  go  in  person  to  the  farmer  and  make  a  con- 
tract with  him  to  cultivate  a  certain  acreage  in  corn,  grass  and  po- 
tatoes. He  is  to  keep  an  accurate  account  of  all  work  done  on  said 
land  cultivated  for  each  crop,  a  careful  account  of  what  is 
made,  showing  exactly  what  each  bushel  of  corn  and  ton  of  hay 
has  cost  to  be  produced.  I  then  make  arrangements  for  his 
fertilizer  and  the  best  farm  tools  to  be  used,  and  I  do  my  best 
to  instill  into  him  the  intensive  rather  than  the  extensive  system 
of  farming.  I  encourage  the  use  of  moru  machinery,  more  horse- 
power and  less  labor,  more  cattle  to  consume  the  roughage  and 


E.  M'IVER,  WILLIAMSON  195 

improve  the  lands.  In  fact  I  tell  them,  through  the  interest  I 
have  in  them,  that  I  am  going  to  criticise  anything  I  see  on 
their  farms  that  is  a  hindrance  to  their  welfare  and  to  the 
happiness  of  their  families.  For  instance,  one  of  my  best  men 
was  drawing  water,  by  buckets,  from  a  90-ioot  well  to  supply 
his  dwelling  and  stables,  while  not  more  than  three  hundred 
yards  from  his  house  was  one  of  the  clearest,  best  springs  I 
ever  saw,  which  would  run  a  hydraulic  rani  that  would  throw 
water  one  hundred  feet  above  his  house.  "We  talked  it  over 
and  he  concluded  to  add  that  convenience,  even  if  he  did  live 
on  a  farm.  There  was  no  use  in  toiling  unnecessarily  just  be- 
cause his  forefathers  had  drawn  water  from  that  90-foot  well. 

It  was  intended  by  God  that  we  should  move  forward  and  not 
stand  still,  and  actually  I  find  men  who  are  working  hard  to 
go  backward. 

I  have  been  asked  by  people  all  over  the  State  to  conduct 
Demonstration  fields  in  their  midst.  They  are  perfectly  willing 
to  do  anything  I  ask  and  there  is  no  trouble  to  get  them  to  take 
hold  of  this  work.  I  am  having  a  meeting  of  the  farmers  at 
each  Demonstration  station.  I  discuss  farm  work  and  farm  life 
and  give  them  the  privilege  to  ask  questions  as  I  go  along.  All 
take  a  part,  showing  they  are  interested. 

Now,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  if  I  can  accomplish  in  my  feeble 
way  the  improvement  of  these  lands  in  Eastern  Virginia,  I  shall 
have  gained  all  the  glory  I  crave. 

THE  ART  OF  RAISING  CORN  SUCCESSFULLY. 
E.  MclvER  WILLIAMSON. 

The  next  speaker  was  Mr.  E.  Mclver  Williamson,  of  Mont- 
clare,  S.  C.,  who  spoke  upon  "The  Art  of  Raising  Corn  Success- 
fully." He  dwelt  particularly  upon  the  point  that  the  plant 
in  its  earlier  stage  should  grow  slowly  and  its  stalk  be  kept 
small,  which  could  be  accomplished  by  withholding  fertilizers 
at  the  first  and  planting  as  soon  as  the  danger  of  frost  is  past; 
then  in  the  later  stage  of  the  maturing  plant  and  the  forming 
ear,  abundance  of  fertilizers  should  be  applied  to  nourish  the 


1'JG  THE  ART  OF  RAISING  CORN 

seed  in  its  rapid  development.  By  this  treatment  the  strength 
of  the  plant  would  be  kept  from  running  into  the  stalks  and 
turned  to  the  perfection  of  the  ears  themselves.  For  a  fuller 
account  of  his  experiments,  reference  is  made  to  an  article  in 
the  HartsvUle  County  Messenger  of  January  17,  1907,  from 
which  we  are  allowed  to  make  the  following  abstract : 

"For  a  number  of  years  after  I  began  to  farm  I  followed 
the  old-time  method  of  putting  the  fertilizer  all  under  the  corn, 
planting  on  a  level  or  higher,  six  by  three  feet,  pushing  the 
plant  from  the  start  and  making  a  big  stalk,  but  with  ears  few 
and  frequently  small.  I  planted  much  corn  in  the  spring  and 
bought  much  more  corn  the  next  spring,  until  finally  I  was  driven 
to  the  conclusion  that  corn  could  not  be  made  on  uplands  in  this 
section  except  at  a  loss. 

"I  did  not  give  up,  however,  for  I  knew  that  the  farmer  who 
did  not  make  his  own  corn  never  had  succeeded  and  never  would. 
So  I  began  to  experiment.  First,  I  planted  lower  and  the  yield 
was  better,  but  the  stalk  was  still  too  large.  So  I  discontinued 
altogether  the  application  of  fertilizer  before  planting,  and 
knowing  that  all  crops  should  be  fertilized  at  some  time,  I 
used  mixed  fertilizer  as  a  side  application  and  later  added  the 
more  soluble  nitrate  of  soda.  Still  the  yield  was  not  large  and 
the  smallness  of  the  stalk  suggested  that  the  plants  might  be 
thicker  in  the  drill.  This  was  done  the  next  year  with  results 
so  satisfactory  that  I  continued  from  year  to  year  to  increase  the 
number  of  stalks  and  the  fertilizer  to  sustain  them,  also  to  apply 
nitrate  of  soda  at  the  last  plowing,  and  to  lay  by  early,  sowing 
peas  broadcast.  This  steadily  increased  the  yield  until,  in  1904, 
with  corn  eleven  inches  apart  in  six-foot  rows,  and  with  eleven 
dollars  worth  of  fertilizer  to  the  acre,  I  made  eighty-four  bushels 
average  to  the  acre,  several  of  the  acres  making  as  much  as  125 
bushels. 

' '  Land  should  be  thoroughly  and  deeply  broken  for  corn ;  and 
this  is  the  time  in  a  system  of  rotation  to  deepen  the  soil.  Cot- 
ton requires  a  more  compact  soil  than  corn,  and  while  a  deep 
soil  is  essential  to  its  best  development,  it  will  not  produce  as 
well  on  loose,  open  land.  Corn  does  best  on  land  thoroughly 


E.   M  IVEK  WILLIAMSON  19  < 

broken.  A  deep  soil  will  not  only  produce  more  heavily  than 
a  shallow  soil  with  good  seasons,  but  it  will  stand  more  wet  as 
well  as  more  dry  weather. 

"In  preparing  for  the  corn  crop,  land  should  be  broken  broad- 
cast during  the  winter,  one-fourth  deeper  than  it  has  been  plowed 
before ;  or,  if  much  vegetable  matter  is  to  be  turned  under,  it  may 
be  broken  a  third  deeper.  This  is  as  much  deepening  as  land 
will  usually  stand  in  one  year  and  produce  well;  though  it  may 
be  continued  each  year  so  long  as  there  is  much  vegetable  matter 
to  be  turned  under.  It  may,  however,  be  subsoiled  to  any  depth 
by  following  in  bottom  of  turn  plow  furrow,  provided  there  is 
not  too  much  of  the  subsoil  turned  up.  Break  with  two-horse 
plow  if  possible,  or  better  with  a  disc  plow.  "With  the  latter, 
cotton  stalks  or  corn  stalks  as  large  as  we  ever  make  them  can 
be  turned  under  without  having  been  chopped,  and  pea  vines 
will  not  choke  or  drag.  Never  plow  land  when  it  is  wet  if  you 
expect  to  have  any  use  for  it  again. 

"Bed  with  a  turn  plow  in  six  foot  rows,  leaving  five-inch 
balk.  When  ready  to  plant,  break  this  out  with  a  scooter,  fol- 
lowing in  the  bottom  of  this  furrow  deep  with  a  Dixie  plow, 
the  wing  taken  off.  Ridge  then  on  this  furrow  with  the  same 
plow  still  going  deeper.  Run  the  corn  planter  on  this  ridge, 
dropping  one  grain  every  five  or  six  inches.  Plant  early,  as 
soon  as  the  frost  danger  is  past,  say  the  first  seasonable  spell 
after  March  15th  in  this  part  of  the  country.  Especially  is 
early  planting  necessary  on  very  rich  lands,  where  stalks  can 
not  otherwise  be  prevented  from  growing  too  large.  Give  the 
first  working;  with  a  harrow  or  any  plow  that  will  not  cover 
the  plants.  For  the  second  working  use  a  ten  or  twelve  inch 
sweep  on  both  sides  of  the  corn,  which  should  now  be  about 
eight  inches  high.  Thin  after  this  working,  leaving  the  right 
number  of  plants  to  each  yard  of  the  row. 

"The  corn  should  not  be  worked  again  until  the  growth  has 
been  so  retarded  and  the  stalk  so  hardened  that  it  will  not  grow 
too  large.  This  is  the  most  difficult  point  in  the  whole  process. 
Experience  and  judgment  are  required  to  know  just  how  much 
the  stalk  should  be  stunted  and  plently  of  nerve  is  required  to 
hold  back  your  corn  when  your  neighbor,  who  fertilized  at 


108  THE  ART  OF  RAISING   CORN 

planting  and  cultivated  rapidly,  has  corn  twice  the  size  of  yours. 
He  is  having  his  fun  now ;  yours  will  come  at  harvest.  The  richer 
the  land  the  more  necessary  it  is  that  the  stunting  process  should 
be  thorough. 

' '  When  you  are  convinced  that  your  corn  has  been  sufficiently 
humiliated  you  may  begin  to  make  the  ear.  The  plants  should 
now  be  from  twelve  to  eighteen  inches  high  and  look  worse  than 
any  corn  you  have  ever  had  before.  Put  half  of  your  mixed  fer- 
tilizer—this being  the  first  used  at  all— in  the  old  sweep  furrow 
on  both  sides  of  every  other  middle,  and  cover  by  breaking  out 
this  middle  with  the  turn  plow.  About  a  week  later  treat  the 
other  middle  in  the  same  way.  Within  a  few  days  side  thi 
corn  in  the  first  middle  with  sixteen  inch  sweep.  Put  all  your 
nitrate  of  soda  in  this  furrow,  if  it  is  less  than  150  pounds; 
if  it  is  more  than  that  use  only  half  now.  Cover  with  one  furrow 
of  the  turn  plow,  then  sow  peas  broadcast  in  this  middle  at 
the  rate  of  at  least  a  bushel  to  the  acre  and  finish  breaking  out. 

"In  a  few  days,  side  corn  the  other  middle  with  the  same  sweep 
and  if  there  remains  a  balance  of  nitrate  of  soda,  put  it  in  the 
furrow,  cover  with  the  turn  plow,  sow  peas  and  break  out. 
This  lays  by  your  crop  with  a  good  bed  and  plenty  of  dirt 
around  the  stalk.  This  should  be  from  June  10th  to  the  20th, 
unless  the  season  is  very  late,  and  the  corn  should  be  hardly 
bunched  for  tassel.  Lay  by  early.  More  corn  is  ruined  by  late 
plowing  than  by  lack  of  plowing.  This  is  when  the  ear  is  hurt. 
Two  good  rains  after  laying  by  should  make  you  a  good  crop, 
and  a  crop  can  certainly  'be  made  with  much  less  rain  than  if 
pushed  and  fertilized  in  the  old  way. 

' '  The  stalks  thus  raised  are  small  and  do  not  require  the  mois- 
ture necessary  for  large  stalks.  They  may  therefore  be  left 
much  thicker  in  the  row.  It  has  long  been  the  custom  to  cut 
back  vines  and  trees  in  order  to  increase  the  yield  and  quality 
of  fruit;  if  you  do  not  hold  back  your  corn  it  too  will  go  to 
stalk.  Do  not  be  discouraged  by  the  looks  of  your  corn  during 
cultivation.  It  will  yield  out  of  all  proportion  to  its  appearance. 
Large  stalks  cannot  make  large  yields  except  with  very  favorable 
seasons,  for  they  will  not  stand  a  lack  of  moisture.  Early  applica- 
tion of  manure  goes  to  make  large  stalks  and  the  plant  food  is 


E. 


WILLIAMSON  199 


thus  used  up  before  the  ear  is  made.  Not  only  will  tall  stalks 
fail  to  produce  well  themselves,  they  also  will  not  allow  you 
to  make  pea  vines,  which  are  so  necessary  to  the  improvement  of 
1he  land. 

"I  consider  the  final  application  of  nitrate  of  soda  an  essen- 
tial point  in  the  ear  making  process;  it  should  always  be  ap- 
plied at  the  last  plowing  and  should  be  unmixed  with  other  fer- 
tilizers. 

"I  am  satisfied  with  one  ear  to  the  stalk,  unless  a  prolific  va- 
riety is  planted,  and  I  leave  a  hundred  stalks  for  every  bushel 
I  expect  to  make.  The  six-foot  row  is  easiest  to  cultivate  without 
injuring  the  plants.  For  fifty  bushels  to  the  acre  I  leave  the 
plants  sixteen  inches  apart;  for  seventy-five  bushels,  12  inches, 
and  for  a  hundred  bushels,  eight  inches  apart.  The  corn  should 
be  planted  from  four  to  six  inches  below  the  level  and  laid  by 
from  four  to  six  inches  above.  No  hoeing  should  be  necessary 
and  middles  may  be  kept  clean  until  time  to  break  out  by  using 
the  harrow  or  by  running  one  shovel  furrow  in  the  center 
of  the  middle  and  bedding  on  that  with  one  or  more  rounds 
of  the  turn  plow. 

'  '  This  method  has  been  successfully  applied  to  all  kinds  of  laud 
in  this  section  except  river  lands  and  moist  bottoms,  and  I  am 
confident  that  it  can  be  used  with  great  benefit  throughout  the 
entire  South.  In  the  Middle  "West,  where  corn  is.  so  prolific 
and  profitable,  and  where,  unfortunately,  so  much  of  ours  has 
been  produced,  the  stalk  does  not  naturally  grow  large.  Com- 
ing South  its  size  increases  at  the  expense  of  the  ear,  until  in 
Cuba  and  Mexico  it  is  nearly  all  stalk,  as  witness  the  Mexican 
varieties.  The  purpose  of  this  method  is  to  eliminate  such  ten- 
dency to  overgrowth  at  the  expense  of  yield  in  this  Southern 
climate.  By  following  this  course  I  have  made  my  corn  crop 
more  profitable  than  cotton,  and  my  neighbors  and  friends  who 
have  adopted  it  have  without  exception  derived  great  benefit 
from  it. 

'  '  The  increased  cost  of  labor  and  the  high  price  of  all  material 
and  land  are  rapidly  making  farming  unprofitable  except  to 
those  who  are  getting  from  one  acre  what  they  formerly  got 
from  two.  We  must  make  our  lands  richer  by  plowing  deep, 


200  RE-DIRECTING  OF  RURAL  INSTITUTIONS 

planting  peas  and  other  legumes,  manuring  with  acid  phosphate 
and  potash,  which  are  relatively  cheap,  and  returning  to  the 
soil  the  resultant  vegetable  matter  rich  in  humus  and  nitrogen. 
The  needs  of  our  soil  are  such  that  the  South  can  never  reap 
the  full  measure  of  prosperity  that  should  be  hers  until  this  is 
done." 

THE  RE-DIRECTING  OF  RURAL  INSTITUTIONS. 
L.  H.  BAILEY. 

(Abstract.) 

Every  one  of  us  is  sure  that  something  large  and  radical 
should  be  done  for  the  farmer  and  for  the  country  living.  We 
are  all  aware  of  the  present  return  of  country-life  sentiment. 
It  is  of  two  kinds :  The  desire  of  many  persons  to  escape  to  the 
country,  which  is  reasonable;  the  desire  of  certain  other  well- 
meaning  persons,  mostly  doctrinaries,  to  "uplift"  the  farmer, 
which  is  mostly  misdirected  and  unnecessary,  but  usually  harm- 
less and  keeps  them  occupied.  The  farmer  stands  on  his  own 
feet,  and  he  needs  no  apology.  The  help  that  he  needs  is  the 
removal  of  conditions  that  disadvantage  him,  so  that  he  can  work 
out  his  own  progress.  Now,  mostly  through  no  fault  of  his 
own,  the  institutions  which  are  nearest  to  him  are  in  a  state  of 
arrested  development  or  even  of  decadence.  The  greatest  need 
at  the  present  day,  whether  in  State  or  national  issues,  is  a  funda- 
mental re-directing  of  rural  institutions.  There  must  be  a  new 
crystalization  of  ideas,  and  perhaps  to  some  extent  a  new  politi- 
cal philosophy. 

The  main  effort  of  the  agricultural  colleges  thus  far  has  been 
to  establish  themselves  and  to  teach  their  students  how  to  make 
the  land  more  productive.  While  a  study  of  the  means  of 
increasing  the  productivity  of  land  must  always  be  the  central 
effort  of  these  institutions,  they  have  now  taken  a  much  larger 
field  and  must  deal  also  with  the  farm  as  a  part  of  the  community 
and  consider  farming  interests  with  reference  to  the  welfare 
and  the  weal  of  the  commonwealth. 


L.   H.  BAILEY  201 

We  have  lived  in  an  epoch  of  city  building.  The  avenues 
of  trade  and  the  movements  of  population  have  drained  the 
country  into  the  city.  The  next  generation  will  see  the  rise 
of  the  small  town  and  the  re-direction  of  the  country  districts. 
The  agricultural  colleges  and  experiment  stations  are  an  essen- 
tial part  of  this  new  re-directing  of  effort  and  all  the  work  of 
these  institutions  eventuates  in  social  ends.  Agricultural  in- 
stitutions are  not  isolated  agencies.  They  contribute  to  the 
public  welfare  in  a  very  broad  way,  extending  their  influence 
far  beyond  the  technique  of  agricultural  trades.  Out  of  all  our 
facts  and  discoveries  we  must  now  begin  to  formulate  a  new 
social  economy. 

With  the  growth  of  the  urban  sentiment  the  nativeness  of 
rural  institutions  has  been  allowed  to  die  out.  City  institutions 
have  taken  their  places.  The  attention  of  all  the  people  has 
been  directed  cityward;  even  though  they  live  in  the  country 
they  think  of  the  town  and  city  as  the  proper  place  in  which 
to  go  to  church,  to  school,  to  seek  enlightenment  and  entertain- 
ment. Socially,  the  country  has  been  left  sterilized.  We  need 
now  a  fundamental  re-direction  of  all  country  institutions;  and 
this,  as  I  think  of  it,  is  the  greatest  internal  problem  now  be- 
fore the  American  people.  We  are  in  great  danger  of  running 
after  strange  gods,  in  supposing  that  wholly  new  agencies  and 
institutions  must  be  invoked  to  cure  the  rural  ills.  Much  of  the 
current  discussion  is  little  more  than  sophistry.  We  are  to  make 
the  greatest  progress  by  utilizing  in  a  new  way  the  forces  and 
institutions  already  in  existence. 

Without  attempting  to  cover  this  field,  I  may  indicate  a  very 
few  of  the  institutions  which  seem  to  me  to  need  new  and  care- 
ful study. 

1.  We  need  to  organize  the  affairs  of  the  agricultural  country. 
There  are  many  small  organizations  crystalizing  about  local 
questions.  These  questions  are  largely  economic.  They  may  be 
societies  of  corn  growers,  of  creamery  men,  of  evaporated  fruit 
men,  clubs  organized  temporarily  to  check  tuberculosis,  read- 
ing clubs,  and  the  like.  Some  central  agency  should  co-ordinate 
and  integrate  all  these  local  and  isolated  organizations  so  that, 
while  every  one  maintains  its  complete  autonomy,  all  together 


202  RE-DIRECTING  OF  RURAL   INSTITUTIONS 

they  may  progress  toward  definite  ends  Most  of  the  rural  or- 
ganizations are  really  conventions  meeting  once  a  year  or  possi- 
bly once  a  month.  In  the  interim  they  have  no  effective  and 
continuing  interest;  thereby,  they  lose  their  efficiency.  In  con- 
tradistinction to  all  this  is  the  Grange  which  conducts  its  busi- 
ness throughout  the  year,  its  offices  always  being  open;  and  this 
is  why  the  Grange  has  such  a  tremendous  influence  in  those 
States  (as  in  New  York  and  New  England)  in  which  it  is 
well  organized. 

2.  The  city  has  developed  greatly  because  of  the  perfecting 
of  means  of  communication.     The  country  is  now  beginning  to 
consider  this  question  also.     Trolleys,  rural  free  deliveries,  and 
other  agencies  are  now  well  established.    We  must  take  care  that 
these  means  of  communication  do  not  result  in   draining  the 
country  into  many  small  cities  or  towns  as  the  railroads  and 
canals   have   heretofore   drained    it    into    metropolitan    centers. 
Good  roads  are  a  means  of  doing  business  expeditiously  and 
economically ;  they  are  also  a  means  of  overcoming  isolation  and 
they  will  have  a  great  influence  in  organizing  social  movements 
in  the  open  country.    All  other  avenues  of  commerce  have  been 
primarily  city  feeders.     It  is  of  the  utmost  importance,  there- 
fore, that  country  highways  serve  country  necessities. 

3.  The  city  has  developed  high  effectiveness  in  entertainment 
and  amusement.     Country  people  are  looking  to  the  city  for 
their  entertainment.    I  am  wondering  whether  the  time  will  not 
come  when  we  shall  endeavor  to  re-establish  some  of  the  good  old 
country  entertainments  and  games.     I  have  already  said  to  the 
students  in  the  college  from  which  I  come  that  I  would  like  them 
to  have  an  athletic  field  of  their  own  if,  thereby,  they  could 
develop  native  games  in  which  many  persons  could  participate 
rather  than  those  in  which  a  few  persons  perform  feats  of  skill 
and  all  the  others  look  on.     There  is  no  essential  or  necessary 
reason  why  country  people  should  look  wholly  to  the  town  or 
city  for  amusement  or  entertainment. 

4.  The  rural  school  needs  fundamental  re-direction.     While 
it  is  better  now  than  it  ever  was  before,  it  is  nevertheless  in  a 
gtate  of  arrested  development  as  compared  with  town  schools 
and  city  schools.    The  small  country  school  is  a  good  school  just 


L.   H.    BATI.EY  203 

because  it  is  small  and  also  because  it  is  close  to  the  actual  prob- 
lems of  the  people.  In  spite  of  this  fact,  however,  the  teaching 
in  these  schools  is  little  related  to  its  environment.  My  old 
friend,  Professor  Roberts,  used  to  say  that  he  had  graduated  f rein 
all  the  country  schools,  and  the  only  thing  he  ever  learned  that 
had  relation  to  the  farm  was  that  cider  is  made  of  apples. 

I  suppose  it  is  indisputable  that  all  effective  education  should 
develop  out  of  experience ;  and  also  that  every  school  should  be 
the  natural  expression  of  its  community.  If  these  statements 
are  accepted,  then  it  will  be  seen  that  the  mere  addition  of  a 
subject  here  and  there  to  the  school  curriculum  may  not  be 
sufficient  to  put  the  school  into  real  relationship  with  its  en- 
vironment. I  am  thoroughly  in  sympathy  with  the  establishment 
of  secondary  special  schools  for  the  teaching  of  agriculture 
whenever  they  can  be  well  organized  and  the  subjects  thoroughly 
well  taught.  I  am  also  much  in  sympathy  with  the  introducing 
of  agriculture  as  a  special  subject  in  rural  schools  whenever  it 
3an  be  effectively  handled.  These  two  agencies  ought  to  be 
effective  in  arousing  and  crystalizing  public  sentiment  to  the 
need  of  a  new  kind  of  education.  However,  these  cannot  solve 
the  problem  of  rural  education  in  terms  of  the  daily  life.  The 
separate  agricultural  school  may  be  thoroughly  effective  from 
the  pedagogical  point  of  view,  b*ut  even  one  in  every  county 
cannot  reach  all  the  people  of  a  State.  Suppose  there  were 
fifty-five  agricultural  high-schools  established  in  the  rual  coun- 
ties of  New  York  State,  for  example,  and  that  each  should  have 
a  capacity  of  graduating  fifty  students  per  year  who  had  received 
elementary  agricultural  instruction.  In  order  that  one  boy  from 
each  farm  in  the  State  should  have  a  chance  in  such  high  school 
would  require  about  eighty-two  years.  Moreover,  there  should 
be  at  least  two  persons  from  every  farm  educated  in  terms  of 
farm  life;  and  new  generations  are  being  born. 

The  final  effectiveness  of  merely  adding  agriculture  in  the 
rural  schools  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  does  not  constitute  a  funda- 
mental re-direction  of  the  whole  point  of  view  of  the  schcol 
itself,  although  it  may  be  a  most  useful  means  of  starting  a 
revolution  that  will  bring  about  that  desirable  end.  I  believe 
in  the  nativeness  of  the  rural  schools.  I  should  like  to  see 


204  RE-DIRECTING  OF   RURAL   INSTITUTIONS 

them  numerous  and  relatively  small.  In  certain  cases,  con- 
solidation of  rural  schools  may  be  advantageous.  It  is  advan- 
tageous only  when  they  need  to  be  consolidated  or  centralized  for 
pedagogical  reasons.  It  is  not  wise  to  consolidate  them  merely  to 
secure  greater  funds  to  maintain  a  combined  school ;  for  it  is 
the  duty  of  the  State  to  see  that  its  people  are  educated ;  and  if 
we  expend  billions  of  dollars  for  canals  and  for  roads  and  for 
other  objects,  we  can  also  afford  to  spend  billions  of  dollars  for 
the  education  of  our  children.  I  should  be  sorry  for  the  time 
when  local  taxation  for  the  maintenance  of  schools  would  ever 
be  eliminated  or  reduced,  for  we  need  the  spur  of  taxation  to 
interest  the  community  in  its  own  affairs;  but,  on  the  other 
hand,  I  also  look  for  the  time  when  the  State  will  co-operate 
even  more  fully  than  at  present  in  making  direct  appropriations 
to  the  rural  schools.  The  school  should  represent  local  interest. 
We  have  become  so  much  in  the  habit  of  moving  from  place  to 
place  that  we  are  likely  to  lose  our  attachment  to  particular 
pieces  of  land.  I  strongly  sympathize  with  the  feeling  of  farm- 
ing communities  that  when  a  school  is  discontinued  in  a  neigh- 
borhood a  vital  spark  has  gone  out  of  the  community. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  have  an  entirely  new  curriculum  in  order 
to  re-direct  the  rural  school.  If  geography  is  taught,  let  it  be 
taught  in  the  terms  of  the  environment.  Geography  is  the  sur- 
face of  the  earth.  It  may  well  concern  itself  with  the  school 
grounds,  the  highways,  the  fields  and  what  grow  in  them,  the 
forests,  hills  and  streams,  the  hamlet,  the  people  and  their  af- 
fairs. When  I  began  to  study  geography  it  was  a  ballooning 
process.  I  began  somewhere  off  in  the  universe  and  gradually 
dropped  down  to  the  solar  system  until  I  reached  the  earth. 
When  I  landed  on  the  earth  it  was  in  South  America  and  Asia. 
I  learned  about  the  anacondas  and  boa  constrictors  of  South 
America  and  the  lions  and  tigers  of  the  old  world  jungles.  I 
never  learned  anything  about  the  pigs  and  chickens  on  our 
farms.  What  I  learned  about  these  exotic  animals  was  of  two 
categories:  there  are  certain  animals  that  deserve  to  be  studied 
because  they  afford  products  useful  to  man;  there  are  certain 
other  animals  that  need  to  be  studied  because  they  are  terrible 
creatures  that  eat  folks  up.  All  this,  of  course,  is  rapidly 


"L.    H.   BAIT.EY 

changing.  We  are  now  interesting  the  child  in  the  earth  on 
which  he  stands,  and  as  his  mind  grows  we  take  him  out  to  the 
larger  view.  A  good  part  of  geography  in  a  rural  community- 
should  be  agriculture,  whether  so-called  or  not.  Geography  can 
be  so  re-organized  and  so  re-directed  as  in  ten  years  to  revolu- 
tionize the  agriculture  of  any  State. 

I  might  make  the  same  remarks  about  arithmetic.  The  prin- 
ciples of  number  are,  I  suppose,  the  same  everywhere ;  but  there 
is  no  reason  why  the  practical  problems  should  not  have  local 
application.  In  my  day,  at  least,  a  good  part  of  the  practice 
problems  were  mere  numerical  puzzles.  I  fancy  that  even  at 
the  present  day  the  old  people  are  interested  in  the  problems 
that  the  child  takes  home  merely  because  the  child  is  in  a  fix  and 
his  predicament  appeals  to  their  sympathies.  When,  however, 
the  child  takes  home  a  problem  that  has  application  to  the 
daily  life,  there  is  a  different  attitude  on  the  part  of  the 
parents,  not  only  to  the  problem,  but  to  the  school  which  gave  the 
problem.  A  good  part  of  agricultural  practice  can  be  expressed 
in  mathematical  form.  How  to  measure  land,  how  to  figure  the 
cost  of  operation,  how  to  compound  a  ration  or  a  spray  mixture, 
how  much  it  costs  to  fight  bugs  in  the  potato  field,  the  mathe- 
matics of  rainfall  and  utilization  of  water  by  plants — these, 
and  a  thousand  other  problems  that  are  personal  and  vital, 
could  be  made  the  means  of  so  re-directing  and  re-organizing 
number  work  as  to  make  it  possible,  by  means  of  the  schools, 
to  revolutionize  the  agriculture  of  any  State. 

My  hearer  can  at  once  make  applications  of  this  line  of 
thought  to  the  reading,  to  the  manual  training,  and  to  the  other 
customary  work  of  the  school.  I  recall  the  case  of  a  young 
teacher  who  was  told  when  he  went  into  a  community  that  per- 
sons could  not  spell  as  they  did  in  the  old  days.  He  saw  bis 
opportunity.  He  discarded  the  spelling  books  and  made  up  a 
list  of  two  hundred  words  that  were  in  common  use  in  the  com- 
munity. He  taught  the  people  to  spell  and,  at  the  same  time, 
he  interested  them  in  a  new  way  in  their  old  affairs.  Starting 
from  this  beginning  he  has  come  to  be  a  man  of  much  more 
than  State  reputation. 


206  RE-DIRECTING  OF  BUBAL  INSTITUTIONS 

You  have  only  to  consider  the  school-houses  to  see  that  the 
rural  school  is  in  a  state  of  arrested  development.  Go  with  me 
from  Maine  to  Minnesota  and  back  again  and  you  will  see  ''n 
the  open  country  practically  the  same  kind  of  school-house 
all  the  way,  and  this  is  the  kind  in  which  our  fathers  went  to 
school.  There  is  nothing  about  it  to  suggest  the  activities  of 
the  community  or  to  be  attractive  to  children.  Standing  in  an 
agricultural  country,  it  is  scant  of  land  and  bare  of  trees.  I 
think  that  if  a  room  or  wing  were  added  to  every  rural  school- 
house  to  which  children  could  take  their  collections  or  in  which 
they  could  do  work  with  their  hands,  it  would  start  a  revolu- 
tion in  the  ideals  of  country  school  teaching  even  with  our 
present  school  teachers.  Such  a  room  would  challenge  every 
person  in  the  community.  They  would  want  to  know  what  re- 
lation hand  training  and  nature-study  and  similar  activities 
bear  to  teaching.  Such  a  room  would  ask  a  hundred  questions 
every  day.  The  teacher  could  not  refuse  to  answer  them.  It  was 
with  some  such  idea  as  this  that  we  have  erected  on  the  Cornell 
campus,  in  connection  with  the  College  of  Agriculture,  a  rural 
school  building  which  has  the  ordinary  teaching  room,  and  it 
also  has  a  work  room.  This  building,  costing  about  $1,800,  is 
also  designed  to  be  comfortable  and  attractive  and  sanitary — 
three  conditions  which  I  fear  are  little  present  in  the  average 
rural  school  building. 

While  we  are  thinking  of  founding  new  schools,  we  may  be 
neglecting  the  present  schools  of  the  people,  which  should  be 
made  the  most  effective  agency  of  reaching  all  the  people.  The 
effort  that  is  put  into  new  enterprises  might  accomplish  more 
good,  in  the  long  run,  if  expended  in  improving  and  re-direct- 
ing existing  institutions.  The  problem  of  the  rural  school  is 
not  so  much  one  of  subjects  as  it  is  of  methods  of  teaching.  The 
whole  enterprise  needs  to  be  developed  natively  and  from  a  new 
point  of  view ;  for  in  an  agricultural  country  agriculture  should 
be  as  much  a  part  of  the  rural  school  as  oxygen  is  a  part  of  the 
air. 

5.  It  is  a  question  whether  we  do  not  also  need  a  re-direction 
in  rural  government.  The  rural  people  are  not  inert,  as  they  are 
often  said  to  be,  nor  are  they  incompetent,  but  the  systems 


L.   H.  BAILEY  ^U  I 

whereby  men  are  organized  and  affairs  are  directed  are  likely  to 
be  incomplete,  ineffective  and  to  lack  vitality.  I  think  we  need 
more  active  and  compact  rural  government.  I  am  afraid  that 
some  of  our  system  of  governing  the  open  country  may  be  found 
to  be  antiquated  and  inadequate. 

6.  The  rural  church  needs  also  radical  attention.  What  I 
have  said  about  the  rural  school-houses  will  apply  very  largely 
also  to  the  country  church  buildings.  They  consist  chiefly  of 
a  preaching  room  and  a  vestibule.  They  have  changed  very  little 
within  two  generations.  Concerned  in  too  many  cases  with 
technical  religion,  formal  piety,  small  and  empty  social  duties, 
the  country  church  lacks  the  activity  and  real  connection  with 
life  to  appeal  to  many  of  the  strong  personalities  in  its  com- 
munity. The  country  church  offers  a  great  opportunity  for 
young  men  who  wish  to  be  of  service  to  their  fellows,  providing 
they  see  a  new  horizon  and  desire  to  re-cast  the  church  effort 
into  line  with  daily  living.  Every  pastor  who  hopes  to  do  the 
greatest  service  in  the  open  country  should  have  training  in 
an  agricultural  college,  or  in  some  similar  institution.  Re- 
ligion is  the  natural  expression  of  living,  not  a  set  of  notions 
or  of  habits,  or  a  posture  of  mind  added  to  the  daily  living. 
The  type  of  religion,  therefore,  is  conditioned  on  the  kind  of 
living,  and  the  kind  of  living  is  conditioned,  in  its  turn,  very 
largely  on  the  physical  and  economic  effectiveness  of  life. 

I  should  like  to  see  on  every  important  four  corners  in  the 
country  four  buildings— on  one  should  be  a  general  assembly 
place,  as  a  town  meeting-hall  or  a  Grange  hall ;  on  another  cor- 
ner I  should  like  to  see  a  building  into  which  the  products  of 
the  community,  historical  mementoes,  books,  biographies  of  the 
inhabitants  and  the  like  could  be  collected  and  preserved.  Such 
a  building  would  develop  a  strong  interest  and  attach  persons 
to  the  land  on  which  they  live.  On  another  of  the  corners  I 
should  like  to  see  a  re-directed  rural  school,  devoid  of  all  fidgets 
and  fads,  which  should  be  as  much  a  native  expression  of  the 
•community  as  are  the  farms  and  the  homes  themselves.  On 
the  other  of  the  four  corners  I  should  like  to  see  a  country 
•church,  which  would  stand  for  aspirations  and  ideals,  but  which 
should  have  its  roots,  nevertheless,  run  deep  into  the  indijjen- 


208  RE-DIRECTING  OF  RURAL  INSTITUTIONS 

ous  affairs  of  the  country.  Everything  with  which  men  have 
to  do  needs  to  be  spiritualized.  This  is  much  more  effective 
for  our  civilization  than  merely  to  spiritualize  things  that  we 
hope  for. 

From  this  brief  sketch  we  see  that  the  rural  country  needs 
a  new  direction  of  effort,  a  new  outlook,  and  a  new  inspira- 
tion. Some  man  some  day  will  see  the  opportunity  and  seize 
it.  The  result  of  his  work  will  be  simply  a  new  way  of  thinking, 
but  it  will  eventuate  into  a  new  political  and  social  economy. 
When  his  statue  is  finally  cast  in  bronze  he  will  not  be  placed 
on  a  prancing  steed  nor  surrounded  by  any  symbols  of  carnage 
or  of  war.  He  will  be  a  plain  man  in  citizen's  clothes,  and 
he  will  stand  on  the  ground,  but  his  face  will  be  towards  the 
daylight. 


THURSDAY  AFTERNOON,  APRIL  11th 

DR.  D.  B.  JOHNSON  IN  THE  CHAIR. 
The  Conference  was  called  to  order  at  about  3:30  o'clock. 

The  topic  of  the  hour  was  announced  as  The  School  Garden, 
to  be  discussed  by  Mr.  Henry  Griscom  Parsons,  of  New  York. 

SCHOOL  GARDENS. 
HENRY  GRISCOM  PARSONS. 

The  International  Children's  School  Farm  League,  whose 
present  headquarters  are  at  29  "West  Fifty-sixth  Street,  New 
York  City,  has  been  started  for  the  especial  purpose  of  supply- 
ing information  and  guidance  to  those  who  need  it.  It  is  the 
direct  result  of  many  letters  of  inquiry. 

Under  the  auspices  of  this  organization,  there  will  be  at  the 
Jamestown  Exposition  this  summer  a  Children's  Farm,  which, 
it  is  hoped,  will  show  something  of  the  spirit  of  this  work  to 
teachers  of  the  country  who  visit  the  Exposition.  It  is  to 
be  done  as  a  partial  answer  to  many  inquiries  about  the  work 
from  teachers  all  through  the  South. 

The  demand  which  is  growing  for  teachers  to  conduct  Chil- 
dren's Gardens  forced  upon  us  the  need  of  a  training  class. 
and  under  the  New  York  University  School  a  most  successful 
class  was  conducted  last  year,  and  is  to  be  repeated  this  sum- 
mer. 

The  conditions  under  which  the  course  is  given  are  as  nearly 
ideal  as  can  be  imagined.  The  fine  old  garden  which  the  class 
uses  supplies  everything  to  be  desired.  The  insects,  flowers  and 
weeds  to  be  specially  dwelt  on  are  here  in  abundance.  The 
garden,  shop,  lecture-room  and  library  are  near  together.  Within 
easy  access  are  three  large  Children's  Gardens,  each  of  a  dis- 


"210  SCHOOL   GARDENS 

tinctly  different  type,  and  each  the  best  of  its  kind.  This  one 
feature  cannot  be  supplied  anywhere  else  in  the  country.  Each 
of  these  gardens  will  be  visited  and  studied  by  the  class  during 
the  summer  session. 

Recent  writers  on  the  History  of  School  Gardens  differ  re- 
garding the  time  and  place  of  their  origin.  Under  King  Cyrus 
the  Elder,  Persia  had  School  Gardens  for  the  sons  of  noblemen 
559  years  before  Christ.  The  great  teacher,  Amos  Comenius, 
1592-1671,  wrote:  "A  garden  should  be  connected  with  every 
school. ' '  August  Hermann  Francke  established  a  School  Garden 
at  Halle  in  1695,  in  connection  with  his  orphan  asylum.  J.  J. 
Rousseau  advanced  the  School  Garden  idea  in  his  book  "Emile," 
published  in  1762.  Pestalozzi  made  use  of  the  garden  idea 
1745-1827,  and  Froebel  recommended  it  1782-1852.  In  1848, 
at  Worms,  Germany,  a  garden  was  connected  with  the  ad- 
vanced school  for  girls.  In  1898  there  were  18,000  in  Austria- 
Hungary  and  7,500  in  Russia.  Nearly  every  country  of  Europe 
has  had  School  Gardens  for  many  years,  especially  Belgium, 
France,  Sweden  and  Russia. 

In  1905  the  United  States  Government  published  Experiment 
Station  Bulletin  No.  160,  entitled  "School  Gardens,  by  B.  T. 
Galloway, ' '  telling  of  the  work  done  in  the  District  of  Columbia 
and  giving  an  account  of  work  in  several  other  cities  of  the 
United  States,  among  the  most  important  being  New  York, 
Philadelphia,  Yonkers,  Boston,  Hartford,  Rochester  and  Cleve- 
land. 

The  teaching,  so  far  as  possible,  is  by  object  lesson.  Let  us 
imagine  one  section  of  the  garden  where  the  children  are  to 
fix  their  paths.  The  teacher  gathers  a  group  about  a  plot.  He 
has  a  hoe  with  marks  on  the  handle  for  a  measure,  a  small 
garden  line  fastened  to  two  sticks,  and  a  spade.  He  measures 
to  find  the  right  place  and  puts  up  the  line,  and  then  with  the 
spade  cuts  the  edge  of  the  plot,  rounds  up  the  path  and  makes 
it  the  right  width.  He  takes,  perhaps,  five  minutes,  and  makes 
a  small  section  of  the  path,  as  he  wishes  the  children  to  do  it. 
Then,  with  the  same  kind  of  tools,  each  child  goes  to  his  own 
little  path,  and  repeats  what  he  has  just  seen  done. 

Suppose  the  lesson   is  on  some  insect,  say  the  lady-bug     A 


1EXRY    GRTSCOM    PARSONS  211 

lady-bug  is  captured,  and  it  is  held  while  it  is  talked  aboT»t. 
The  children  see  the  shell-like  wing-covers  and  count  the  spots. 
Then  underneath  these  they  see  the  wonderful  folding  wings. 
Then,  with  a  small  magnifying  glass,  they  see  the  r  ywerful  little 
jaws,  and  learn  that  with  these  jaws  the  lady-bug  proves  to 
be  a  friend  to  the  farmer  by  eating  up  many  of  the  plant  lice 
which  are  sucking  the  life  out  of  some  of  the  vegetables  in  their 
plots.  The  children  are  told  the  story  from  the  laying  of  the 
little  bunch  of  pretty  yellow  eggs,  through  the  larvge  stage  up  to 
the  mature  insect.  Then  the  little  group  moves  to  a  nearby 
plant,  where  the  lady-bug  is  right  at  work  doing  just  what  they 
have  been  told  about  it.  Often  last  summer  such  a  group  could 
be  seen  watching  the  lady-bug  eating  the  plant  lice.  I  remem- 
ber coming  up  behind  one  group  and  hearing  one  youngster 
exclaim :  ' '  O-o  !  Now  only  its  legs  is  out ! "  At  almost  any 
time  during  the  summer  every  stage  of  the  life  history  could 
be  found  in  the  garden,  and  they  were  used  at  every  talk. 

The  aphis,  or  plant  lice,  which  are  one  of  the  principal  foods 
of  the  lady-bug,  was  also  used  for  such  talks,  and  the  garden 
furnished  a  great  plenty  in  every  stage  of  existence.  In  the 
same  way  the  cabbage  worm  was  watcned  and  studied. 

If  the  child  sees  what  is  being  taught  it  will  be  much  more1 
interested  and  attentive;  and  this  is  quite  true  with  grown- 
ups. When  we  try  to  tell  how  the  water  comes  up  through  the 
soil,  we  also  have  a  glass  of  water  with  a  piece  of  cloth  dipped 
in  it  and  hanging  over  the  edge.  The  water  from  the  glass  will 
go  up  the  strip  of  cloth  and  then  drip  from  the  outer  end. 
There  are  many  ways  of  explaining  to  the  child's  eye  facts  in 
connection  with  the  water  in  plants,  but  to  show  how  much 
water  is  in  a  young  growing  plant  we  just  take  one  from  the 
garden,  and  with  the  hands  crush  and  squeeze  ii  until  the  water 
rims  from  it  as  when  wringing  a  wet  cloth.  This  always  interests 
them. 

As  soon  as  the  plants  in  the  plots  are  a  few  inches  high  we 
take  up,  in  a  simple  way,  some  of  the  important  elementary 
principles  of  plant  life:  all  that  we  can  learn  about  the  rela- 
tion of  water  to  plants;  where  the  water  comes  from;  how 
much  is  needed ;  how  it  keeps  the  plant  cool  and  carries  in  the 


212  SCHOOL   GARDENS 

mineral  food;  how  large  a  part  of  the  young  plant  is  water  and 
how  this  water  in  the  plant  holds  up  the  leaves,  and  that  wilting 
is  the  loss  of  this  water.  We  learn  that  plants  need  fresh 
water,  and  then  we  try  to  learn  something  of  what  fresh  water 
is. 

Air  plays  a  very  important  part  both  above  and  below 
ground,  and  supplies  to  the  plant  about  90  per  cent,  of  its  dry 
matter.  The  older  children  are  told  of  the  chlorophyl,  green 
matter  in  the  leaves,  and  the  manufacture  of  starch  by  the  plant. 
"We  talk  about  the  soil  which  supplies  the  mineral  food  and 
supports  the  plant.  We  talk  about  how  soil  is  made  and  the 
difference  between  sand  and  clay,  and  what  soil  ventilation  is, 
and  what  it  means  to  the  roots  and  in  the  preparation  of  more 
mineral  food;  the  uses  of  manure,  what  it  is,  and  what  for, 
how  it  should  be  added.  Especial  attention  is  paid  to  the  in- 
fluence of  sunlight  and  to  the  value  of  oxygen  above  and  below 
ground.  How  much  or  how  little  of  these  things  is  grasped 
by  the  children  depends  partly  upon  their  intelligence,  but 
largely  upon  the  knowledge  of  the  teacher  and  his  ability  to 
put  into  simple  language  what  he  has  to  say,  and  then  to 
make  anything  he  does  fascinating. 

Experiments  are  tried  with  plants  in  darkness,  in  semi- 
darkness,  in  shade  and  in  bright  sunlight.  Plants  are  half- 
grown  in  the  light  and  then  shut  off  from  the  light  by  covers. 
Some  are  grown  close  together  and  others  separate  to  get 
the  maximum  of  sunlight.  In  a  short  time  the  children  rea- 
lize that  lack  of  sunlight  means  paleness  and  weakness  in  the 
plants,  and  then  their  attention  is  drawn  to  the  fact  that  the 
same  seems  to  be  true  with  children,  many  of  them  mentioning 
it  before  the  teacher  does. 

The  analogy  is  nearly  perfect  between  the  needs  of  the  plant 
and  the  needs  of  the  child.  And  when  the  lessons  of  plant  life 
have  been  clearly  given,  the  child  at  the  same  time  has  learned 
some  valuable  hygiene  for  its  own  body.  The  value  of  fresh 
air,  fresh  water,  room  for  expansion,  direct  sunlight,  proper 
food,  proper  temperature,  cleanliness,  activity,  protection  from 
insects  and  fungi.  Plants  and  children  alike  need  these. 


IIEXRY     GRISCOM     PARSOXS  ! 

One  of  the  interesting  and  pleasant  facts  in  connection  with 
the  garden  work  is  the  undoubted  value  to  the  children's  health. 

One  day  a  physician  came  to  the  garden,  and  while  he  was 
being  shown  about,  he  asked,  "What  is  taught  besides  garden- 
ing?" The  reply  was,  "Ethics.  There  are  458  individual 
farms,  each  with  a  tenant.  The  space  is  small.  There 
must  be  harmony.  The  effort  is  made  to  bring  the  best  of 
all  to  the  surface.  Courtesy  and  justice  are  working  rules. 
Spend  another  hour  here.  Mingle  freely  with  the  children. 
Watch  them  and  talk  to  them."  He  did,  and  before  leaving 
he  came  to  me  and  said,  "I  begin  to  see.  I  came  here  because 
my  practice  is  largely  with  children,  and  I  was  most  interested 
in  their  physical  health.  But  there  is  more  to  it.  They  are 
polite,  obedient  and  careful  of  the  rights  of  others,  and,  ,vkh 
it  all,  perfectly  natural  and  happy.  It  is  truly  ethics.'' 

At  another  time  a  lady  coming  to  visit  the  garden  inquired 
her  way  of  a  small  boy.  He  at  once  offered  to  guide  her.  He 
escorted  her  to  the  Farm,  opened  the  gate  and  brought  her  to 
me.  As  she  thanked  him,  he  took  off  his  hat  and  said  good-bye. 
She  was  so  impressed  that  she  told  me  of  it.  I  replied,  "That 
is  what  we  call  the  spirit  of  the  garden."  "Well,"  she  said, 
"it  seems  to  extend  several  blocks." 

As  soon  as  you  come  inside  the  .Farm  gate  the  atmosphere 
of  the  city  streets  seems  far  away.  Here  is  a  piece  of  ground 
covered  with  busy,  happy  children ;  filled  with  growing  plants, 
gaudy  butterflies  and  the  hum  of  insects.  A  small  farmer 
shows  you  about  the  Farm,  pointing  out  the  things  of  interest, 
•md  the  longer  you  stay  the  longer  you  wish  to  stay.  By  the 
tool-house  a  group  are  scouring  tools.  Just  in  front  of  it  some 
others  are  hanging  up  the  day's  washing.  Nearby  a  youngster 
is  intently  watching  a  caterpillar  eating  a  leaf.  A  small  boy 
rushes  past,  intent  on  the  capture  of  a  butterfly.  Your  guide 
leads  you  to  the  peanut  plant,  and  explains  how  they  burrow 
into  the  ground,  and  then  digs  one  up  to  show  you  the  small 
peanut  just  forming,  while  a  small  group  of  people  gather  out- 
side the  fence  to  join  in  seeing  the  marvel.  Next  you  are  shown 
the  baby  egg-plant,  which  is  just  beginning  to  show  dark 
purple.  And  so  on,  from  one  wonder  to  another.  No  fnirv 


214  SCHOOL  GABDENS 

story  ever  written  has  the  mystery,  the  absorbing  interest  of 
one  of  these  small  Farms.  All  the  science  of  man  cannot  fully 
explain  what  goes  on.  And,  day  by  day,  child  and  teacher 
together  work  and  wonder  and  rejoice. 

And  when  the  harvest  comes  the  little  farmer  takes  the  crop 
home,  and  says:  "Mother,  see  what  I  growed. "  And  the  in- 
terest of  the  child  stirs  the  home;  for  father,  mother,  brothers 
and  sisters,  cousins  and  friends  come  to  see  Tommy's  or  Mary's 
Farm,  and  they  tell  you  in  various  ways  what  a  big  place  in 
the  child's  life  the  garden  fills. 

The  garden  idea  is  bound  to  spread.  Its  value  appeal*  to 
every  one  who  sees  the  work  in  operation.  I  know  of  many 
places  where  the  work  will  be  started  next  summer.  Several 
of  the  city  public  schools  have  begun  it  in  a  small  way  in  their 
yards.  And  outside  of  New  York  City  the  movement  is  grow- 
ing rapidly.  In  a  few  years,  when  we  have  them  on  every 
hand,  wherever  children  are  taught,  the  wonder  then  will  be: 
How  did  we  ever  get  along  without  them? 

The  Hon.  Richmond  Pearson  Hobson,  member  of  the  United 
States  Congress  from  Alabama,  was  then  introduced  to  the 
Conference,  and  spoke  as  follows : 

RICHMOND  PEARSON  HOBSON. 

Mr.  Chairman,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

It  is  a  great  pleasure  for  me  to  come  to  this  Conference. 
The  question  you  have  in  hand  is  the  eternal  question  of  the 
ages.  Human  life,  like  all  other  life  upon  the  earth,  starts  in 
an  embryonic  condition  and  unfolds,  and  during  the  period  of 
unfolding  it  is  plastic.  The  education  of  to-day  must  make  the 
civilization  of  to-morrow. 

When  honored  by  an  invitation  to  take  part  in  the  exercises 
of  this  Conference,  it  seemed  to  me  advisable  not  to  prepare 
a  paper  to  read,  but  to  make  an  informal  talk  bearing  upon 
practical  matters  within  my  own  field  of  observation,  and  es- 
pecially to  lay  before  the  Conference  a  plan  I  am  inaugurating 


RICHMOND   PEAESOX    HOBSON 

this  spring  in  my  own  district  to  put  to  educational  use  the 
available  political  forces  of  any  Congressional  district. 

The  population  of  the  South  is  essentially  a  rural  popula- 
tion, more  so  than  in  any  other  part  of  America.  Out  of 
10,400,000  population  in  the  South  Atlantic  States,  8,500,000 
live  outside  of  towns  of  8,000  population;  and  in  the  South 
Central  States,  out  of  a  population  of  14,000,000,  only  1,600,000 
live  in  cities  of  8,000  or  above— 85  per  cent,  of  the  population 
in  the  first  case  and  89  per  cent,  in  the  second,  or  87  1-2  per 
cent  of  the  population  of  the  south  is  rural. 

Furthermore,  the  education  afforded  in  the  rural  districts  is 
woefully  and  inevitably  backward  as  compared  with  education 
in  the  cities.  The  best  criterion,  perhaps,  is  the  length  of  the 
school  term.  For  the  cities  of  the  South  it  averages  174  days 
in  the  year,  178  days  in  the  South  Atlantic  States,  and  171 
days  in  the  South  Central  States,  the  average  in  the  United 
States  being  186  days  for  cities.  The  comparison  is  very  good. 
But  in  the  rural  districts,  where  the  vast  bulk  of  the  population 
lives,  the  average  for  the  South  Atlantic  States  is  only  110 
days,  and  for  the  South  Central  States  only  100  days,  makiug 
a  general  average  of  only  104  days  to  be  compared  with  134 
days,  the  average  for  the  rural  districts  of  the  whole  country. 
Thus  in  the  South  the  school  term  in  the  rural  sections  is 
70  days  shorter  than  in  the  cities,  while  in  the  whole  country  it  is 
only  52  days  less.  In  addition,  the  per  cent,  of  the  aver- 
age attendance  as  reported  is  75  per  cent,  for  the  cities  of 
the  South,  and  only  61  for  the  rural  sections,  making  a  dif- 
ference for  the  United  States  of  only  6  per  cent.  Thus  the 
South  is  educationally  the  weak  part  of  America,  and  the  rural 
districts  are  the  weak  part  of  the  South. 

I  would  not  in  the  least  degree  detract  from  the  importance 
of  the  work  of  education  in  the  cities,  and  would  say,  God- 
speed to  the  noble  men  who  are  so  ably  managing  it.  I  would 
not  have  this  Conference,  or  any  other  educational  force,  omit  or 
withhold  its  utmost  assistance  to  this  work,  but  I  beg  to  im- 
press upon  you  the  fact  that  the  problem  of  education  in  the 
South  is  essentially  the  problem  of  reaching  the  farmers,  which, 


216  SCHOOL   GARDENS 

involving  the  weakest  in  education  in  the  whole  country,   be 
comes  actually  the  greatest  problem  in  America. 

The  problem  therefore  is,  how  to  get  education  to  the  farmer, 
those  far  out  in  the  hills  and  valleys  and  swamps,  in  many  eases 
uttterly  forgotten  by  progress  in  its  onward  march,  and  yet 
the  best  blood  in  the  land — strong,  brave  men  with  the  greatest 
possibilities,  who,  when  reached  by  education,  have  always  re- 
cruited, and  must  in  the  future  recruit,  the  ranks  of  our  states- 
men, our  educators,  our  manufacturers,  our  bankers  and  busi- 
ness men,  our  patriots  for  the  country's  defence,  whether  it 
be  a  question  of  ballots  or  of  bullets. 

Isolation  and  poverty  have  been  and  are  the  two  fundamental 
conditions  that  produce  this  backwardness  in  rural  educa- 
tion. Any  movement  for  advance  must  embrace  all  measures 
that  will  effectively  reduce  this  isolation  and  poverty.  Any 
educational  scheme  must  take  account  of  and  foster  so  far 
as  practicable  the  development  of  means  of  intercommunica- 
tion and  transportation,  especially  the  enlargement  of  mail 
facilities  in  the  extension  of  rural  deliveries  and  the  improve- 
ment of  roads,  with  whatever  may  utilize  the  resources  of  the 
country,  especially  the  resources  of  the  soil. 

But  the  great  obstacle  in  the  way  is  the  lack  of  local  interest. 
If  we  can  arouse  the  farmers,  all  the  rest  will  follow.  Noth- 
ing illustrates  this  backwardness  of  local  interest  better  than 
the  small  percentage  of  school  funds  or  income  supplied  locally. 
In  the  North  Atlantic  States  the  local  percentage  is  72;  in  the 
South  it  is  only  47.  The  Legislatures  of  the  Southern  States 
have  been  more  and  more  liberal  to  the  cause  of  education ; 
the  weakness  is  in  local  taxation.  A  wise  and  far-reachinsr 
beginning-  has  been  made  by  the  present  Legislature  of  Ala- 
bama to  encourage  local  interest  by  appropriating  $1,000  a  year 
for  each  county  for  the  erection  of  five  rural  schools,  provided 
that  the  county  raise  the  equivalent,  each  school  district  taking 
advantage  of  this  having  to  raise  $200  to  cover  the  $200  offered. 
Perhaps  the  greatest  benefit  in  every  case  will  be  the  local 
interest  aroused  in  raising  this  amount.  I  would  commend 
this  action  of  Alabama  to  the  delegates  from  other  States. 


RICHMOND    PEAKSOX    IIOHSOX  21T 

Alabama  has  provided  in  her  new  Constitution  that  a  county 
can  proceed  to  hold  an  independent  election  to  assess  a  one- 
mill  tax  for  its  own  school  purposes.  About  two-thirds  of  the 
counties  have  already  voted  their  additional  tax,  and  the  agi- 
tation during  the  campaigns  in  these  county  elections  has 
done  more  for  the  cause  of  education  in  Alabama  than  anything 
in  the  history  of  the  State.  The  remarkable  record-breaking 
work  for  education  of  the  present  Legislature  can  be  attribut- 
ed directly  to  this  cause.  I  would  recommend  some  such  pro- 
vision to  the  delegates  from  other  States;  and  I  will  join  with 
the  other  delegates  from  Alabama  to  go  forth  and  not  stop  till 
all  the  counties  of  our  State  have  this  educational  tax,  and 
then  to  start  a  campaign  for  a  constitutional  amendment  author- 
izing any  school  district  to  assess  a  local  tax  of  whatever  amount 
it  sees  fit  for  the  purpose  of  education,  and  to  proceed  to  future 
campaigns  county  by  county,  until  the  local  tax  is  what  it 
should  be. 

But  the  plan  I  wish  to  lay  before  the  Conference  is  one 
which,  in  my  judgment,  is  the  quickest  and  surest  way  to 
arouse  among  the  farmers  this  local  interest  so  vital  and  in- 
dispensable to  any  scheme  of  educational  improvement;  it  is 
to  utilize  the  farmers'  innate  interest  in  politics  and  political 
discussions.  The  plan,  consisting  of  two  parts,  may  be  outlined  as 
follows : 

First.  The  appointment  of  a  politico-educational  committee 
for  each  State,  this  committee  to  arrange  with  all  candidates, 
irrespective  of  political  associations,  to  devote  a  part  of  .?ach 
and  every  political  speech,  whether  in  a  local,  county,  State 
or  national  campaign,  to  the  cause  of  education;  the  committee 
to  furnish  the  candidates  with  needed  information  and  suggest- 
ing, perhaps,  the  lines  to  be  pursued,  emphasizing  particularly 
those  new  measures  that  are  desirable,  such,  for  example,  as 
I  have  mentioned.  I  am  confident  that  the  candidates  would 
show  the  greatest  willingness,  and  indeed  would  feel  grateful 
for  the  suggestions.  The  two  Senators,  the  Governor  and  ihe 
State  Superintendent  of  Education  should  be  ex-officio  mem- 
bers of  this  committee.  "We  can  and  we  should  turn  every 


218  SCHOOL   GARDENS 

political  campaign  in  America  into  an  effective  educational 
campaign  as  well. 

Second.  The  appointment  of  a  general  Congressional  com- 
mittee to  take  the  country  up  by  Congressional  districts  and 
call  upon  each  Congressman  to  become  the  center  of  a  dis- 
trict movement,  to  employ  his  own  efforts  and  bring  to  bear 
all  available  resources  of  the  national  government  for  arousing 
this  local  interest. 

I  am  going  to  put  this  proposition  into  effect  in  my  own 
district  this  year  and  make  an  educational  canvass  next  month. 
I  have  found  the  Departments  in  Washington  most  cordial.  Of 
course  most  of  the  co-operators  will  come  from  the  Department 
<of  Agriculture,  but  the  Post-office  Department,  through  the 
Fourth  Assistant  Postmaster  General,  has  indicated  its  readi- 
ness to  follow  up  instantly  the  increased  demand  for  rural 
-deliveries  that  is  sure  to  follow.  The  Interior  Department  has 
indicated,  through  the  Commissioner  of  Education,  its  readiness 
to  supply  information  or  anything  else  in  its  power.  Under 
the  Department  of  Agriculture,  the  Commissioner  of  Fisheries 
is  prepared  to  meet  the  increased  demand  for  fish  to  stock  ponds 
and  streams.  The  chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Soils  has  detailed  one 
of  the  best  soil  experts  in  America  to  accompany  me  in  the 
•canvass  and  educate  the  audiences  upon  the  possibilities  of  their 
land.  The  Bureau  of  Public  Roads  has  likewise  detailed  one 
of  the  very  best  road  experts  in  America  to  accompany  me 
and  educate  the  audiences  on  the  advantages  of  good  roads 
and  how  to  obtain  them.  I  am  now  seeking  an  education  ex- 
pert to  complete  the  personnel  for  the  canvass  and  to  educate 
the  audiences  on  the  advantages  of  an  education.  Each  speaker 
is  to  use  thirty  minutes. 

By  the  time  the  canvass  begins,  May  6th,  I  hope  also  to  have 
found  a  source  from  which  I  can  offer  to  cover  the  amount  any 
locality  may  raise  for  new  school-houses,  or  for  repairing  old 
ones.  In  the  case  of  those  districts  raising  $200  to  cover  the 
State's  $200,  there  might  be  given  an  additional  $200,  affording 
a  $600  school-house,  which  would  be  the  basis  for  a  comparatively 
large  school,  so  that  there  could  be  more  concentration,  larger 
numbers  and  higher  standards— schools  to  which  pupils  at  a  dis- 


RICHMOND    PEARSOX    1IOBSOX  219 

tance  might  be  brought  by  conveyance,  making  trips  like  rural 
delivery  carriers,  picking  the  pupils  up  at  stated  points  on  the 
road  and  delivering  them  back  there. 

At  some  time  during  the  coming  session  of  Congress,  I  expect 
to  get  published  in  the  Congressional  Record  a  short  treatise 
on  practical  education,  and  then  to  frank  this  in  pamphlet 
form  to  every  voter  in  my  district. 

The  Executive  Committee  of  this  Conference  should  be  PX- 
officio  members  of  this  proposed  committee,  and  the  committee, 
I  feel  sure,  could  count  upon  co-operation  of  all  the  Congress- 
men from  the  South,  and  doubtless  on  all  the  Congressmen  of 
the  country.  Such  committees,  as  suggested  above,  could,  I 
believe,  organize  and  utilize  in  large  measure  the  political  re- 
sources of  the  country  in  the  great  cause  of  education  aid 
reach  the  farmers  of  the  South  as  they  cannot  be  reached  in  ;my 
other  way. 

To  my  mind  there  is  great  inspiration  for  putting  forth  <nir 
best  efforts.  I  do  not  disparage  any  other  section  of  the  country 
when  I  say  that  the  South  has  the  purest  Anglo-Saxon  blood  in 
America;  that  in  great  questions  of  State  the  Southern  states- 
men have  been  and  naturally  are  the  most  disinterested.  Amer- 
ica has  great  problems  to  solve  at  home.  I  believe  that  with 
expansion  in  education  the  South  will  not  only  utilize  its  own 
vast  resources  but  will  take  the  leadership  in  solving  America's 
great  problems.  America  has  a  great  role  to  play  among  rhe 
nations  of  the  earth;  to  maintain  a  great  navy  with  which  she 
can  insure  her  own  pea'ce  and  build  up  a  great  influence  Her 
the  ocean  for  carrying  peace,  justice  and  free  institutions 
abroad;  to  take  the  leadership  in  the  great  movement  of  the 
Peace  Congress  in  New  York  next  week,  and  at  the  approach- 
ing Second  Conference  of  the  Hague,  to  create  an  international 
organization  for  arbitration,  an  international  Congress  and  an 
adequate  Court  for  the  international  affairs  of  the  world,  thus 
staying  the  cruel  march  of  war  and  ultimately  making  peace 
permanent  over  the  earth.  The  South  educated  would  take 
leadership  in  this  great  work. 


-20  EDUCATION  FOR  SOUTHERN  WOMEX 

A  paper  by  Miss  Alice  Lloyd,  of  Nashville,  Tennessee,  was  to 
have  been  read  at  this  session,  but  lack  of  time  prevented. 
It  is  accordingly  printed  in  this  connection. 

EDUCATION  FOR  SOUTHERN  WOMEN. 
ALICE  LLOYD. 

The  purpose  of  the  following  pages  is  to  call  attention  to  the 
inadequate  provision  either  public  or  private  for  the  education 
of  Southern  women.  As  is  known  to  all  students  of  the  subject, 
the  public  school  system  in  the  South  is  far  from  being  equa^ 
to  the  public  school  system  in  other  sections  of  the  country; 
which  fact  finds  its  explanation,  in  large  measure,  in  the  eco- 
nomic results  of  the  devastating  conflict  waged  between  the 
States  in  the  '60's.  The  writer  would  welcome  a  successful 
refutation  of  the  statement  that  South  of  Louisville  there  is  not 
a  public  high  school  that  fully  meets  modern  standards  of  sec- 
ondary education,  and  that  South  of  Baltimore  there  is  not 
a  private  secondary  school  for  girls  that  ranks  with  the  Girls' 
Latin  School  of  that  city.  If  exceptions  could  be  found,  they 
would  be  so  rare  as  only  to  emphasize  the  rule.  South  of  ttie 
Woman's  College  of  Baltimore  we  have  only  two  institutions 
for  the  higher  education  of  women  that  are  eligible  to  membership 
in  the  Southern  Association  of  Colleges  and  Preparatory  Schools ; 
the  Sophie  Newcomb  Memorial  College,  and  the  Randoiph- 
Macon  Woman's  College.  Such  provision  is  inadequate  to 
meet  the  demand  that  should  exist  in  so  large  a  population. 

While  many  of  the  State  and  of  the  denominational  institu- 
tions for  higher  education  are  open  to  women,  co-education  in 
this  section  is  not  popular,  and  in  few  of  these  co-educational 
institutions  is  provision  made  for  the  home  life  of  women  stu- 
dents. The  Southern  mother  is  slow  to  send  her  young  daughter 
into  a  town  or  city  to  find  board  where  she  can  and  to  assume 
all  responsibility  for  herself  outside  of  the  class-room. 

The  Southern  girl,  certainly  outside  the  larger  cities,  is  then, 
for  the  most  part,  dependent  for  education  above  the  grammar 
grades,  upon  private  or  denominational  boarding  schools,  var- 


ALICE   LLOYD 

iously  known  as  Seminaries  or  "Colleges."  These  schools  are 
of  varying  degrees  of  excellence  or  inferiority,  depending  upon 
the  standards  of  those  at  the  head  of  them  and  the  resources 
at  their  command.  Almost  without  exception  they  depend  for 
their  existence  upon  their  earnings ;  and  in  most  instances  where 
the  plant  is  not  the  property  of  the  head  of  the  school,  they 
must  pay  rent  to  cover  taxes,  insurance,  repairs,  etc.  They  are 
often  conducted  with  much  heroic  self-sacrifice  on  the  part  of 
the  managers  and  teachers,  and  good  work  is  done ;  but  with  all 
the  sacrifice,  they  have  not  been  and  are  not  able  to  furnish 
the  best  educational  facilities.  The  lack  of  funds  results  in 
inadequate  buildings,  the  absence  of  laboratories  and  libraries, 
insufficient  teaching  force  both  as  to  numbers  and  preparation, 
and  over-crowded  classes.  The  same  cause  compels  compromises 
that  are  to  the  hurt  of  academic  standards,  but  which  find 
their  justification  in  the  plea  that  it  is  better  to  exist  with  a  low 
standard  than  not  exist  at  all.  But,  good  or  bad,  these  pri- 
vate and  denominational  schoools  are  about  all  the  Southern 
girl  has  had ;  and  the  responsibility  for  their  deficiencies  lies  in 
the  system,  supported  by  the  general  public,  and  not  with  the 
individual. 

Those  schools  are  as  a  rule  no  part  of  a  system.  They  do 
not  articulate  with  the  grammar  s'chool  below  nor  with  the 
College  and  University  above.  By  granting  degrees  they  set 
up  standards  that  are  provincial  and  without  recognition  in 
the  academic  world.  This  imitating  of  men's  schools  in  the 
use  of  terms  while  the  content  is  lacking  does  not  make  for 
integrity,  dignity  or  character,  and  respect  for  woman's  sense 
of  values. 

When  educated  men  do  not  scorn  such  imitation  they  smile 
at  it  indulgently.  Such  standards  for  the  measurement  of  her 
intellectual  achievements  are  an  assumption  or  a  confession  of 
weakness  and  inferiority,  and  will  have  to  be  discarded  before 
recognition  is  obtained  of  the  claims  made  for  her  capacity  to 
perform  all  forms  of  social  service  and  to  share  equally  civic 
responsibility. 

There  is  here  no  purpose  to  enter  upon  the  discussion  of  the 
equality  or  the  equivalence  of  men  and  women.  Whatever 


222  EDUCATION  FOB  SOUTHERN  WOMEN 

woman's  rank  compared  with  man's,  she  is  not  an  imitation, 
an  echo,  or  a  substitute.  Her  worth  and  her  sphere  are  real 
and  distinctly  hers,  justly  demanding  candid  recognition  md 
rational  culture.  If  the  disciplines  prescribed  for  men  do 
not  best  find  and  develop  her,  let  intelligent  study  be  made 
that  adequate  training  may  be  provided.  Let  us  not  resort  to  the 
weak  subterfuge  of  having  her  feebly  attempt  the  training  pre- 
scribed for  men. 

But  secondary  education  has  its  function  in  the  finding  and 
the  forming  of  the  individual  as  an  intelligent,  moral  being; 
the  imparting  of  those  values  common  to  all  civilized  life,  and 
not  in  the  making  of  specialists  in  any  vocation.  It  may  well 
be  argued  then  that  through  the  secondary  period  the  courses 
prescribed  for  men  and  women  should  be  practically  the  same. 
In  the  university  they  may  pursue  diverging  lines  determined 
by  the  form  of  service  they  are  to  render  society. 

Underlying  all  forms  of  specialized  work  are  the  great  fun- 
damental principles  common  to  the  life  and  work  of  both  men 
and  women.  Let  both  acquire  a  knowledge  of  these  fundamen- 
tals, and  each  in  turn  apply  such  knowledge  to  the  solution  of 
his  special  problems. 

It  is  encouraging  to  know  that  in  at  least  one  college  there 
is  a  school  of  house-keeping,  and  recently  one  has  seen  and 
heard  the  expression,  the  "profession  of  home-making." 

Judgments  may  vary  regarding  the  relative  importance 
of  woman's  part  in  the  game  of  life.  None  will  deny  that  she 
is  in  the  game,  and  that  the  success  of  all  the  players  depends 
largely  upon  how  she  plays  her  part.  In  a  good  game  jach 
player  must  be  efficient  with  deference  to  others.  "Foot-bali 
has  made  the  world  its  debtor  for  the  expression  'team  work;' 
a  good  phrase  embodying  a  fundamental  idea."  The  whole  of 
community  life  is  team  work,  efficiency  in  which  involves  a 
knowledge  in  each  player  of  his  own  part  in  the  game,  and  such 
intelligent  conception  of  the  game  as  a  whole,  as  will  enable 
him  to  co-operate  with  his  fellows  for  common  ends.  The  sec- 
ond function  is  as  important  as  the  first,  and  it  is  the  object 
of  secondary  education  to  give  this  conception  of  life  as  a  whole. 
Though  women  may  never  attempt  to  do  the  work  of  men,  nor 


ALICE   LLOYD  223 

men  the  work  of  women,  the  most  successful  living  requires 
that  each  should  at  least  understand  what  the  other  is  trying 
to  do  and  the  common  ends  before  them. 

The  quality  of  the  secondary  work  done  in  most  schools  for 
girls  and  the  inadequate  scholarship  and  narrow  academic  out- 
look on  the  part  of  the  teachers,  in  large  measure  accounts  for 
the  small  number  of  Southern  women  who  go  to  college.  As 
set  forth  in  the  preceding  pages,  the  present  system  of  individ- 
ual or  denominational  initiative,  and  dependence  upon  the  earn- 
ings of  the  school,  results  in  teaching  science  without  laborato- 
ries, history  and  literature  without  libraries,  inadequate  teach- 
ing force  as  to  numbers,  scholarship,  and  educational  outlook. 
Classes  are  not  infrequently  twro  and  even  three  times  as  large 
as  they  should  be,  thus  making  efficient  teaching  impossible, 
wasting  the  pupil's  time,  dissipating  instead  of  developing  her 
mental  power,  and  exhausting  and  discouraging  the  conscien- 
tious teacher.  Teachers  have  sometimes  resorted  to  the  expidi- 
ent  of  excusing  the  bright  pupils,  on  alternate  days,  that  they 
might  not  be  wearied  while  she  drilled  the  slower  element.  The 
trouble  was,  they  had  two  classes  in  one;  but  the  girls  better 
endowed  by  nature  were  entitled  to  their  five  recitations  per 
week,  and  it  is  the  greatest  injustice  to  reduce  them  to  the  ranks 
of  mediocrity,  or  below,  by  taking  from  them  half  the  oppor- 
tunity for  effort  and  instruction  that  was  due  them.  The  pupil 
who  would  go  to  college  is  discouraged  by  the  fact  that  her 
school  has  not  the  right  of  certification ;  she  knowrs  her  prepara- 
tion in  some  subjects  is  insufficient,  and  she  feels  insecure  about 
others. 

The  principal  of  a  large  and  influential  school  for  girls  re- 
ferred to  the  demand  for  college  preparation  that  had  been 
made  by  an  increasing  number  of  students  for  some  years  as 
' '  an  evil  -that  had  come  to  stay. ' ' 

The  most  influential  teacher  in  a  boarding  school  with  a  ma- 
triculation of  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  was  asked  why  some 
of  the  fine  material  that  yearly  came  to  the  school  was  not  stimu- 
lated and  prepared  to  go  to  the  better  colleges,  that  they  might 
develop  their  innate  capacity  for  leadership.  She  replied :  "We 
are  keeping  it  a  secret  that  there  is  anything  beyond. ' ' 


224  EDUCATION   FOR  SOUTHERN  WOMEN 

In  another  larger  school,  remark  was  made  to  one  of  the 
formative  spirits :  ' '  These  girls  are  not  getting  anything  that 
they  can  use.  It  is  certain  that  some  of  them  will  desire  or  need 
to  teach,  and  they  are  neither  prepared  to  teach  nor  to  enter 
college  that  they  may  prepare."  The  reply  was:  "We  are  not 
training  breadwinners.  If  they  wish  to  prepare  for  college,  let 
them  study  in  the  summer  schools;  if  they  need  to  teach,  let 
them  study  as  I  did. ' ' 

When- the  necessity  is  upon  them,  their  time  is  gone,  their 
money  is  gone,  and  they  have  no  further  capital  either  of  time 
or  money  to  invest  in  preparation.  If  the  girls  always  knew 
just  the  value  of  what  they  are  getting,  the  responsibility  of  the 
school  would  be  less. 

Much  time  and  money  are  spent  on  so-called  accomplish- 
ments that  ought  to  be  devoted  to  solid  work.  An  excellent 
teacher  in  a  girls'  school  said,  when  the  policy  of  adjusting  the 
course  to  college  entrance  requirements  was  urged:  "If  the 
girls  do  all  this  work,  they  will  have  no  time  for  extras." 

It  is  to  the  advantage  of  the  exchequer  that  the  taking  of 
"extras"  be  encouraged.  During  the  period  of  classifications 
a  teacher  was  asked  if  she  thought  certain  pupils  had  been  classi- 
fied in  accordance  with  good  pedagogic  principles.  She  said 
no,  but  that  teachers  were  expected  to  encourage  the  taking  of 
extras.  The  daughter  of  the  man  with  more  money  than  educa- 
tion is  often  at  a  disadvantage,  so  far  as  the  acquiring  of  the 
larger  and  more  permanent  values  is  concerned. 

A  few  well  equipped  and  reasonably  endowed  secondary 
schools  for  girls  in  each  Southern  State  would  greatly  increase 
the  number  of  women  who  would  be  unwilling  to  undertake  their 
life  work  without  the  training  of  a  college  education.  ' '  The  peo- 
ple perish  for  lack  of  vision"  now,  as  in  the  olden  time. 

In  the  interests  of  the  national  good,  schools  have  been  gener- 
ously equipped  for  the  negro  and  the  mountain  white,  while 
so  important  a  national  factor  as  the  Southern  white  woman  in 
average  circumstances  has  been  overlooked;  the  daughter  of 
the  Southern  white  man  of  culture  and  of  average  income  has 
been  left  to  find  with  difficulty,  amid  conditions  that  her 
mother  deems  desirable,  opportunity  for  such  educational  ad- 


ALICE   LLOYD  225 

vantages  as  her  Northern  sister  has  in  every  city  and  in  almost 
every  township.  Is  this '  oversight  due  to  the  estimate  placed 
on  the  relative  value  to  the  State  of  this  element  of  the  popula- 
tion ?  When  her  importance  is  reduced  to  the  lowest  terms,  does 
she  not  make  the  home  atmosphere  in  which  the  Southern  citi- 
zen spends  his  childhood  and  youth,  and  does  not  this  influence 
determine  largely  his  attitude  toward  national  problems  'ind 
his  ability  to  cope  with  them ?  "If  she  be  small,  how  shall  men 
grow  strong?" 

This  thought  was  impressed  upon  one  who  listened  to  the 
exercises  at  the  recent  dedication  of  a  new  science  hall  at  an 
institution  for  the  higher  education  of  negroes.  If  for  a  few 
generations  we  seek  to  develop  the  negro  mind  to  the  extent  of 
its  capacity,  and  continue  to  give  to  the  white  girls  only  the 
rudiments  of  education  with  a  thin  veneering  of  accomplish- 
ments, will  not  the  question  of  race  supremacy  become  acute? 
Shall  we  continue  to  leave  our  young  women  in  ignorance  of  the 
fundamental  principles  that  underlie  thought,  while  we  put  the 
negro  in  a  position  of  greater  awareness?  The  contention  is 
not  that  educational  facilities  are  adequate  for  any  part  of  the 
population ;  but  that  the  population  should  be  elevated  en 
masse  and  not  in  sections.  The  larger  enlightening  of  the  once 
favored  portion  should  prove  a  strong  lever  in  the  elevation 
of  the  entire  body.  It  is  undemocratic  to  give  to  one  class 
opportunities  denied  the  other,  whether  the  denied  class  be 
the  average  citizen  or  the  less  fortunate  one. 

We  need  college  trained  women  to  teach  in  schools  for  girls. 
As  a  rule  men  of  the  first  ability  as  educators  do  not  give  them- 
selves to  the  secondary  education  of  girls,  and,  indeed,  public  -ee- 
ondary  education  of  both  sexes  is  almost  as  exclusively  in  the 
hands  of  women  as  the  private  secondary  education  of  girls. 
The  greater,  then,  is  the  need  of  making  possible  the  best  train- 
ing for  Women  and  of  stimulating  them  in  the  secondary 
schools  to  go  to  college. 

In  process  of  time  the  public  school  system  will  be  developed 
and  good  high  schools  will  be  established.  Because  a  dual  sys- 
tem is  necessary  with  us,  for  economic  reasons,  the  progress  will 
be  slow.  In  the  meantime  generations  of  girls  will  realize  'ess 


226  EDUCATION  FOR  SOUTHERN  AVOMEN 

of  life  and  of  usefulness  as  women,  for  lack  of  educational  op- 
portunity. But  even  after  good  public  high  schools  have  in- 
creased in  number,  work  will  be  left  for  the  endowed  private 
school.  ''Institutions  established  by  the  vote  of  majorities  can 
hardly  be  expected  to  mark  the  highest  progress;  they  rather 
show  the  average  aspirations  of  a  community."  "The  best 
private  schools  will  ever  represent  the  most  complete  realiza- 
tion of  educational  ideals. ' '  Dr.  David  Starr  Jordan  has  some- 
where said  that  while  the  poorest  public  school  does  not  sink 
to  the  level  of  futility  of  the  poorest  private  school,  the  best 
public  school  does  not  rise  to  the  measure  of  efficiency  of  the 
best  private  school.  The  present  need  is  for  schools  equipped 
to  do  their  work  according  to  the  best  that  modern  pedagogy 
knows,  and  with  endowment  that  will  lift  the  school  above  the 
necessity  of  hurtful  compromise  and  submission  to  injudicious 
dictation. 

Endowment  is  necessary  also  to  make  possible  first-class  aca- 
demic advantages  without  charges  that  are  prohibitive  to  the 
daughter  of  the  man  of  moderate  means;  usually  the  very  ^irl 
who  wants  and  will  take  advantage  of  the  best  education.  If 
schools  in  the  North  and  East  cannot  live  on  their  earnings,  ex- 
cept the  class  of  schools  that  makes  charges  that  would  be  pro- 
hibitive in  the  South,  how  can  Southern  schools  live  on  their 
earnings  and  compete  in  the  quality  of  work  done  with  the 
Northern  schools?  A  school  that  has  for  its  first  object  sound 
education  is  not  a  dividend-declaring  enterprise. 

To  make  the  largest  appeal,  to  secure  the  strongest  support, 
and  to  do  the  most  efficient  work,  these  schools  should  be  dedi- 
cated to  the  broad  cause  of  the  Christian  education  of  white 
women,  and  not  to  the  propagation  of  any  sect.  The  denomi- 
national school  has  been  of  immense  service — time  was  when 
both  men  and  women  looked  chiefly  to  it  for  opportunity;  but 
the  minds  of  men  have  broadened  in  their  horizon,  as  they  have 
deepened  in  their  realization  of  the  essence  of  Christianity,  and 
Christian  education  is  best  served  in  the  undenominational 
school. 

The  establishing  of  schools  on  a  sounder  economic  and  Mca- 
demic  basis  will  not  affect  in  a  hurtful  way  the  better  of  the 


ALICE   LLOYD 


99- 


"finishing"  schools  for  girls.  There  is  unquestionably  a  large 
demand  for  just  what  they  offer.  Both  parents  and  daughters 
•would  choose  them  if  they  were  correctly  labeled  and  fully  and 
accurately  analyzed.  Only  the  less  worthy  ones  would  drop 
off.  But  the  girl  and  the  parent  who  are  willing  to  give  the 
money,  time,  and  effort  to  secure  the  sounder  education  would 
be  able  to  find  the  opportunity  they  seek.  It  is  a  serious  matter 
to  the  individual  and  to  society  to  deprive  youth  of  the  best  edu- 
cational advantage  that  it  has  capacity  for  and  disposition  to 
improve. 

Reality  and  thoroughness  of  standard  and  extended  scope  in 
school  training  would  release  woman  from  the  bonds  of  the  su- 
perficial and  the  narrow,  enable  her  to  interpret  the  facts  of  life 
and  to  adjust  herself  helpfully  to  them,  and,  by  so  much,  in- 
crease social  efficiency  directly  in  the  power  of  the  woman  her- 
self, and  indirectly,  as  she  forms  her  children.  Uniform  edu- 
cational standards,  or  at  least  equivalent  standards,  will  tend 
to  a  peaceable  solution  of  national  problems  by  furnishing  a 
common  point  of  view.  It  is  not  wise  to  expect  broad,  liberal, 
just  judgments  from  those  who  are  but  partially  furnished  -vith 
the  data,  and  who  lack  training  in  the  scientific  spirit  and  use 
of  data. 

All  the  discipline  and  power  that  can  come  to  the  South 
through  education  will  be  called  into  requisition.  Dear  as  the 
doctrine  of  State  Sovereignty  has  been  to  many  hearts,  we  are 
confronted  by  a  "condition,  not  a  theory."  Already  we  refer 
to  the  United  States  as  it,  not  they.  The  tendency  is  toward 
centralization,  dislike  it  who  may.  If  we  cannot  stay  the  ten- 
dency, let  us  at  least  have  full  share  in  directing  it.  If  we  are 
to  be  a  part  of  a  strongly  centralized  government,  let  our  influ- 
ence be  equal  to  that  of  any  other  section  in  shaping  national 
policies.  Only  so  shall  we  escape  the  fortune  of  an  outlying 
province  that  must  take  orders  from  a  stronger  power.  Our 
natural  powers  will  need  as  much  training  and  discipline  as  are 
open  to  those  of  other  sections  if  we  are  not  to  fall  behind  in 
national  influence. 

Dr.  X.  S.  Shaler,  in  writing  a  history  of  his  native  State,  said 
that  in  the  early  days,  when  native  ability  was  matched  with 


EDUCATION  FOR  SOUTHERN  WOMEN 

native  ability  in  the  national  councils,  Kentucky  was  the  peer 
of  any  State  in  the  Union  in  influence ;  but  that  since  the  day  of 
the  trained  man  had  arrived,  Kentucky  lives  chiefly  in  past  glory 
because  she  refuses  to  concede  that  native  ability  plus  training 
is  greater  than  untrained  native  ability.  Is  Kentucky  alone 
in  the  sisterhood  of  Southern  States  in  the  loss  of  national  pres- 
tige? 

Strengthen  the  educational  forces  for  men  and  for  both  races, 
and  let  us  bear  in  mind  that  the  companion  of  all  man's  efforts 
will  in  no  small  measure  determine  the  extent  of  his  successes. 
In  the  interests  of  national  well-being,  the  laws  of  heredity  and 
environment  suggest  the  wisdom  of  providing  equal  educational 
facilities  for  both  sexes. 


THURSDAY  EVENING,  APRIL  llth 

CLOSING  SESSION. 
HON.  WILLIAM  A.  BLAIR  IN  THE  CHAIR. 
The  Conference  was  called  to  order  at  7 :15  o  'clock. 

After  announcements  by  the  Secretary,  the  Chairman  intro- 
duced Dr.  Edwin  Minis,  of  Trinity  College,  Durham,  North 
Carolina. 

LEARNING  FROM   OUR  NEIGHBORS. 
BY  PROFESSOR  EDWIN  MIMS,  TRINITY  COLLEGE. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  books  of  the  past  few  years  is 
Owen  Wister's  "Lady  Baltimore,"  in  which  the  author  has  tet 
forth  in  artistic  manner  the  charm  of  Charleston — "the  most 
appealing,  the  most  lovely,  the  most  wistful  town  in  America; 
whose  visible  sadness  and  distinction  .seem  alone  to  speak  audi- 
bly, speak  in  the  sound  of  the  quiet  waves  that  ripple  round  her 
southern  front,  speak  in  the  church  bells  on  Sunday  morning, 
and  breathe  not  only  in  the  soft  salt  air,  but  in  the  perfume  of 
every  gentle,  old-fashioned  rose  that  blooms  behind  the  high 
garden  wall  of  falling  mellow-tinted  plaster:  Kings  Port,  the 
retrospective ;  Kings  Port,  the  belated,  who  from  her  pensive 
porticoes  looks  over  her  two  rivers  to  the  marshes  and  the  trees 
beyond,  the  live-oaks,  veiled  in  gray  moss,  brooding  with  mem- 
ories."  As  sympathetically  as  any  Southern  writer  Mr.  Wister 
has  entered  into  the  romance  of  this  sole  relic  of  a  civilization 
that  has  passed  away.  He  is  captivated  by  the  soft  Southern 
accent  which  in  the  conversation  of  fine  old  ladies  is  like  "the 
charm  of  some  sweet  old  melody."  In  contrast  with  all  this 
isolated  society  he  indicates  the  coming  in  of  modern  forces  from 


•230  LEARNING  FROM  OUR  NEIGHBORS 

•the  North,  the  replacers  of  a  gentle  civilization.  ''Yes,  vulgari- 
zation is  descending  even  upon  Kings  Port,  and  the  manners  of 
some  of  our  own  young  people  will  soon  be  as  disheveled  as  those 
in  New  York,"  exclaims  Mrs.  St.  Michael. 

Thus  artistically  has  Mr.  Wister  set  forth  the  feeling  of  many 
people  with  regard  to  the  changes  now  going  on  in  the  South, 
which  many  look  upon  as  a  veritable  "Yankee  invasion."  As 
one  reads  this  interesting  novel,  or  the  words  of  "Nicholas 
Worth,"  in  the  Atlantic  Monthly,  describing  the  conditions  that 
prevailed  in  Southern  colleges  in  the  seventies,  and  then  looks 
out  on  the  contemporary  South  of  to-day,  he  feels  that  a  revolu- 
tion has  taken  place  in  Southern  life  and  Southern  opinion. 
And  there  are  many  who  shake  their  heads  at  this  unquestiona- 
ble influence  that  is  seen  in  industry,  society,  school,  and  college. 
They  will  not  join  in  the  cry  of  progress.  Atlanta,  with  its 
skyscrapers,  its  thrifty  and  aggressive  business  life,  its  metro- 
politan social  life,  seems  little  different  from  Chicago  or  New 
York.  The  novelist  who  has  best  portrayed  the  charm  of  Rich- 
mond in  the  older  days  has  not  a  few  flings  at  the  rapidly  devel- 
oping commercial  life  of  the  former  capital  of  the  Confederacy. 
Even  the  University  of  Virginia— so  long  the  pride  of  conser- 
vative Southerners,  so  long  resisting  inevitable  educational  re- 
forms— is  now  renewing  her  mighty  youth  and  keeping  step 
with  the  most  advanced  sister  universities.  There  is  little  differ- 
ence in  many  respects  between  the  academic  atmosphere  of  the 
leading  Southern  institutions  and  that  of  the  best  Northern. 
The  members  of  the  faculty  are  for  the  most  part  men  who  have 
had  their  training  in  Harvard,  Yale  and  Columbia;  the  under- 
graduates, quick  to  respond  to  contemporary  influences,  have 
followed  with  eagerness  the  athletic  and  social  tendencies  of 
American  colleges.  Scientific  journals,  magazines,  leading 
newspapers,  have  all  played  their  part  in  influencing  public 
opinion.  If  I  had  to  say  what  single  journal  has  the  largest 
influence  in  the  South,  I  should  name  a  New  York  weekly. 

There  are  some  who,  in  the  presence  of  all  these  changes,  are 
either  pessimistic  or  obstinate.  I  heard  not  long  ago  an  old 
chaplain  in  Lee's  army  make  an  attack  on  young  teachers  of 
history  who,  trained  in  Northern  colleges,  are  now  attempting 


PROF.   EDWIX   MIMS 

to  change  the  writing  of  history  in  the  South.  I  heard  a  staunch 
old  Virginian  lamenting  the  fact  that  in  a  Southern  college  a 
course  should  be  given  mainly  on  the  literature  of  New  England. 
It  was  the  boast  of  a  distinguished  Southerner  after  the  war 
that  we  had  at  least  two  things  left,  our  religion  and  our  edu- 
cation, but  to  many  even  these  seem  to  be  passing  away  in  this 
new  democracy  which  we  are  fashioning.  Some  preachers  and 
lecturers  brought  from  the  North  are  spoken  of  as  emissaries  of 
irreligion  and  materialism.  Almost  pathetic  to  contemplate  is 
a  noble  old  friend  of  mine — as  fine  a  gentleman  as  ever  lived — 
who  has  recently  seen  his  church,  in  common  with  a  Northern 
branch  of  the  same  denomination,  accept  a  hymn-book  out  of 
which  he  steadfastly  refuses  to  sing;  who  has  seen  the  public 
school  of  his  town  celebrate  the  birthday  of  Lincoln ;  and— 
worst  of  all — has  heard  his  own  son  speak  in  complimentary 
terms  of  Wendell  Phillips. 

At  the  other  extreme  from  the  conservative  is  the  radical,  who 
realizing  the  backwardness  of  the  South,  would  impose  another 
civilization  upon  ours.  Knowing  of  the  tremendous  development 
that  has  taken  place  in  industry,  in  education,  and  in  the  gene- 
ral welfare  of  the  people,  he  would  have  the  South  accept  almost 
bodily  the  results  that  may  be  seen  elsewhere.  Indeed,  it  is  a 
great  advantage  that  a  people,  defledted  from  their  true  course 
by  a  social  and  industrial  system  at  war  with  the  modern  world, 
impoverished  by  a  destructive  war,  and  disheartened  by  the 
awful  blunder  of  political  idealists  and  partisans,  should  now, 
in  the  midst  of  a  great  awakening,  accept  the  results  of  their 
fellow-countrymen  who  have  worked  out  the  problems  of  demo- 
cracy without  serious  obstacles.  This  is  a  decided  advantage — 
the  same  advantage  that  a  nation  like  Japan  had  fifty  years 
ago,  when  with  a  receptive  and  aggressively  constructive  mind, 
she  went  to  all  the  nations  of  the  world  seeking  for  the  most  re- 
cent achievements  and  ideas  of  institutions,  that  might  be  of 
assistance  to  her  in  the  working  out  of  a  great  civilization.  If 
we  are  wise  and  open-minded  in  the  presence  of  a  civilization 
further  advanced  than  ours,  we  have  the  magnificent  opportu- 
nity of  moving  forward  by  leaps  and  bounds  in  the  great  ways 
of  modern  thought  and  modern  life. 


232  LEARNING  FROM  OUR  NEIGHBORS 

But  there  is  another  advantage  that  we  have  scarcely  empha- 
sized sufficiently.  If  we  may  profit  by  the  fine  achievements 
of  other  people,  we  may  likewise  profit  by  their  mistakes.  There 
is  a  decided  advantage  in  being  behind  the  times,  if  we  can  "hus 
avoid  the  evils  of  the  time  spirit.  We  may  even  take  pride  in 
being  called  "contemporary  ancestors,"  if  we  can  sift  the  good 
from  the  bad  in  the  achievement  of  the  generation  that  has  lived 
in  the  North  since  the  Civil  War.  Suppose  that  certain  tenden- 
cies in  education,  in  industry,  in  society  and  in  religion,  have 
elsewhere  reached  certain  conclusions,  so  that  tendencies  making 
for  a  reaction  have  set  in,  do  we  have  to  follow  the  same  course, 
make  the  same  mistakes,  or  may  we  not  gain  time  by  adjusting 
ourselves  to  changed  conditions?  Are  we  going  to  repeat  the 
blunders  that  have  been  made  elsewhere?  Have  we  a  type  of 
leadership  that  is  wise  enough  and  strong  enough  to  keep  us 
from  certain  extreme  tendencies?  That  seems  to  me  the  most 
interesting  question  that  Southerners  have  to  face  at  the  present 
time.  I  sometimes  fear  that  we  are  in  great  danger  of  falling 
exactly  into  the  dangers  of  contemporary  life  and  contemporary 
thought  in  the  North. 

For  instance,  the  North  has  now  for  a  generation  or  more  wit- 
nessed a  prodigious  development  of  wealth.  The  South  is  just 
;at  the  beginning  of  an  industrial  movement.  Evidently  there 
are  some  achievements  in  the  North  that  we  can  profit  by  very 
greatly— some  things  that  we  can  appropriate  bodily ;  the  public 
spirit  that  has  made  much  wealth  the  means  of  a  finer  social 
environment,  the  philanthropic  spirit  that  has  found  expression 
in  the  patronage  of  music  and  art  and  literature,  the  sense  of 
public  welfare  that  has  led  to  a  condition  of  living  on  the  part ' 
of  the  masses  of  the  people  without  a  parallel  in  the  history  of 
the  world.  We  shall  not  let  any  sentimentalism  of  the  dema- 
gogue or  the  idealist  keep  us  from  seeing  that  one  of  the  great 
curses  of  the  South  has  been  poverty,  and  that  one  of  the  greatest 
needs  of  the  South  is  a  well  established  economic  order.  At  the 
same  time  shall  we  not  hear  the  voices  of  protest  now  sounding 
in  the  North  against  the  dangers  of  materialism  and  commer- 
cialism, as  these  have  affected  every  element  in  social  ife  ?  Shall 
we  be  able  to  have  wealth,  and  yet  subordinate  it  to  intellectual 


PROF.  EDWIN  MIMS  233 

and  spiritual  interests?  Shall  we  not  hear  the  warning  of  great 
scholars  and  prophets,  and  even  business  men  themselves  ?  ' '  How 
in  the  march  of  industrialism  these  qualities  of  fellowship  and 
leisure  may  be  retained  in  the  mass  of  the  people" — that  is 
the  point. 

Or,  to  look  at  the  industrial  problem  from  another  standpoint, 
are  we  going  to  profit  by  the  experience  of  England  and  New 
England  with  regard  to  factory  legislation?  It  looks  sometimes 
as  if  our  captains  of  industry  were  going  to  show  the  same  atti- 
tude that  we  find  in  other  places  fifty  or  seventy-five  years  ago ; 
as  if  we  had  to  begin  all  over  again  to  fight  out  the  old  battles  in 
the  old  way.  Shall  we  approach  the  question  of  child  labor, 
hours  of  labor  for  men  and  women,  labor  unions,  factory  settle- 
ments, as  if  we  were  the  first  that  ever  had  to  deal  with  them  V 

But  I  wish  to  direct  your  attention  especially  to  educational 
conditions  in  the  North,  as  they  may  throw  light  on  our  own 
intellectual  advancement.  America  for  the  past  generation  has 
been  seriously  at  work  upon  a  great  common  school  system, 
the  development  of  the  high  school,  and  the  improvement  and 
enrichment  of  college  and  university— all  of  these  gradually 
being  brought  into  a  more  perfectly  regulated  system,  a  more 
harmonious  plan.  This  movement  has  gone  far  enough  to  enable 
us  to  see  certain  definite  results.  When  President  Oilman  re- 
tired from  the  presidency  of  John  Hopkins  University  and  Pres- 
ident White  from  that  of  Cornell  University,  an  era  in  the  his- 
tory of  American  universities  may  be  said  to  have  closed.  Al- 
though President  Eliot  and  President  Angell  are  still  engaged 
in  active  work,  we  may  now  see  the  results  of  nearly  forty  years 
of  active  service  for  their  own  institutions  and  for  others.  These 
four  university  presidents  will  always  be  identified  in  the  popu- 
lar mind  with  a  great  historical  movement— the  development  of 
the  elective  system,  the  promotion  of  graduate  work,  the  main- 
tenance of  high  standards  of  admission  and  graduation,  the 
correlation  of  an  educational  system,  the  larger  atmosphere  of 
freedom  and  tolerance  that  now  prevails  in  American  institu- 
tions. In  President's  White's  "Autobiography,"  in  the 
"Launching  of  a  University"  by  President  Oilman,  and  in  the 
reports,  articles  and  books  of  President  Eliot  one  may  find  an 


234  LEARNING  FROM  OUR  NEIGHBORS 

invaluable  record  of  the  marvelous  achievements  of  the  past 
generation. 

There  is  a  certain  glow  of  enthusiasm  in  President  White's 
account  of  his  dreams  and  final  achievement  of  establishing  a 
great  university.  "At  Berlin,"  he  says,  "I  saw  my  ideal  of  a 
university  not  only  realized,  but  extended  and  glorified— with 
renowned  professors,  with  ample  lecture  halls,  with  everything 
possible  in  the  way  of  illustrated  material,  with  laboratories  and 
museums,  and  a  concourse  of  youth  from  all  parts  of  the  world. 
.  .  .  Gradually  I  began  to  ask  myself  the  question:  'Why 
not  help  the  beginning  of  this  system  in  the  United  States?'  ' 
The  benefaction  of  Ezra  Cornell  gave  him  the  opportunity  he 
dreamed  of,  and  his  own  zeal  and  patience  in  the  face  of  great 
opposition  are  the  heritage  of  all  Americans.  Dr.  Oilman,  who 
as  a  young  man  was  unable  to  find  any  satisfactory  graduate 
work  in  the  large  colleges  of  this  country,  found  in  the  projected 
Johns  Hopkins  University  a  chance  to  realize  his  own  ideal  of 
a  university ;  he  gathered  about  him  a  band  of  scholars  and  stu- 
dents whose  enthusiasm  for  research  and  study  was  felt  through- 
out the  country.  President  Angell  did  more  than  any  one  else, 
perhaps,  to  promote  the  development  of  the  great  State  univer- 
sities of  the  West.  And  more  than  any  of  these,  President 
Eliot,  with  the  resources  and  prestige  of  a  great  university  at 
his  command,  has  worked  out  in  detail  the  organization  of  Har- 
vard, and  with  statesmanlike  grasp  of  educational  conditions 
has  wielded  an  enormous  influence  throughout  the  country. 

As  a  result  of  the  building  up  of  their  respective  institutions 
and  their  general  influence  on  others,  there  has  come  about  a 
marked  readjustment  of  our  educational  system.  Where  there 
was  confusion,  there  is  now  order.  In  the  establishment  of  the 
General  Education  Board,  with  the  vast  resources  at  its  com- 
mand, of  the  Carnegie  fund  for  the  pensioning  of  teachers  ;ind 
the  Carntgie  fund  for  research,  we  have  for  the  first  time  ii> 
America  a  general  scheme  for  a  national  system  which  approxi- 
mates that  of  Germany  or  France,  and  may  at  the  same  time 
avoid  the  too  great  evils  of  the  centralization  of  power.  The 
first  report  of  the  Carnegie  Board  prepared  by  President  Pritch- 
ett  is  a  worthy  fruitage  of  the  past  generation's  work.  There 


PROF.   EDWIX   M i:\IS 

is  a  clarifying  of  the  atmosphere  when  we  can  agree  upon  the 
definition  of  a  college  as  given  in  this  report:  "Any  institu- 
tion to  be  ranked  as  a  college  must  have  at  least  six  professors 
giving  their  entire  time  to  college  and  university  work,  a  course 
of  four  full  years  in  liberal  arts  and  sciences,  and  should  require 
for  admission  not  less  than  the  usual  four  years  of  academic  or 
high  school  preparation  or  its  equivalent. ' ' 

And  yet  even  in  the  presence  of  this  great  educational  devel- 
opment, there  are  signs  of  a  reaction  against  some  of  the  ex- 
tremes ;  there  are  voices  of  protest  raised  by  men  who  speak  with 
authority.  All  is  not  well.  I  have  little  patience  with  those 
general  onslaughts  on  the  larger  educational  institutions  ttiat 
one  sometimes  hears  from  ignorant  and  bigoted  men.  I  do  not 
refer  to  the  criticism  of  the  men  who  speak  altogether  from  the 
outside,  but  rather  those  who  speak  from  the  inside.  Even  the 
four  distinguished  educators  whom  I  have  already  alluded  to 
have  expressed  their  distrust  of  certain  tendencies  in  institu- 
tions over  which  they  have  presided — tendencies  that  may  be 
said  to  be  the  logical  development  of  reforms  instituted  by  them. 
Says  President  White:  "In  swinging  away  from  the  old  oast- 
iron  course  of  instruction,  and  from  the  text-book  recitation  of 
the  mere  dry  bones  of  literature,  there  may  be  seen  at  this  hour 

some  tendency  to  excessive  reaction Reflecting  upon 

the  shortness  of  human  life  and  the  vast  mass  of  really  great 
literature,  I  see  with  regret  courses  offered  dealing  with  the  bub- 
bles floating  on  the  surface  of  literature. ' ' 

Younger  men  have  written  with  insight  and  effect  of  the  evils 
of  the  elective  system  to  which  President  White  refers.  Dean 
Briggs,  the  man  most  thoroughly  conversant  with  undergraduate 
life  at  Harvard,  wrote  several  years  ago  a  most  suggestive  arti- 
cle on  "Some  Old-Fashioned  Doubts  about  New-Fashioned  Edu- 
cation." -  His  experience  and  observation  lead  him  to  ask:  (1) 
Are  we  sure  that  we  did  not  begin  the  elective  system  too  early  ? 
(2)  Are  we  sure  that  the  enjoyment  which  we  wish  to  put  into 
education  is  sufficiently  robust?  (3)  While  fitting  the  study 
to  the  boy,  have  we  been  unfitting  the  teacher  for  him?  (4) 
For  the  evils  of  the  old  system  may  we  not  be  rushing  into  another 
servitude  almost  or  quite  as  dangerous  as  the  first? 


236  LEARNING  FROM  OUR  NEIGHBORS 

One  of  the  most  trenchant  of  recent  critics  of  the  present 
system  is  Mr.  Charles  Francis  Adams,*  who,  though  not  a  pro- 
fessional educator,  has  had  abundant  opportunity  to  study  edu- 
cational conditions.  A  graduate  of  Harvard  College  under  the 
old  regime,  he  has  been  for  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  a 
member  of  its  Board  of  Overseers.  He  gave  a  good  description 
of  himself  as  well  as  of  a  certain  type  of  man  when  he  said :  "  In 
no  degree  an  admirer  of  things  that  were,  I  am,  if  possible,  still 
less  disposed  to  rest  in  all  respects  content  with  what  is.  My 
testimony  is  merely  that  of  an  observer— an  observer  who  is 
neither  an  optimist  nor  a  pessimist — though  perhaps  inclined 
to  be  otherwise-minded.  I  find  myself  as  much  dissatisfied  with 
the  new  as  I  was  with  the  old.  Neither  squares  at  all  with  my 
experience  or  my  observation."  No  one  ever  criticised  more 
severely  the  old  order  of  things,  and  yet  he  regards  the  elective 
system,  which  has  had  as  its  battle-cry  liberty,  aptitude,  indi- 
viduality, as  an  educational  fad,  "crude,  ill-considered,  thor- 
oughly unscientific,  and  extremely  mischievous."  He  practically 
agrees  with  President  Hadley  that  "the  sugar  plums  of  educa- 
tion do  not  furnish  a. strengthening  of  intellectual  diet." 

One  of  his  main  objections  to  the  entire  educational  system  is 
that  there  is  a  tendency  for  it  to  harden  into  routine  and  ma- 
chine work.  The  office  of  president  has  become  so  absorbing 
on  its  executive  side  that  he  no  longer  has  the  direct  personal 
influence  over  students  that  he  formerly  had.  The  college 
faculty  tends  to  become  a  part  of  a  complicated  machine,  the 
individuals  losing  their  identity  in  a  certain  insistence  on  sche- 
dules, programmes,  and  curricula.  The  student  body  has  be- 
come so  large  as  to  lose  all  personal  touch  with  the  teachers— 
the  average  undergraduate  is  merely  ' '  one  unit  in  an  impersonal 
mob. ' '  In  other  words,  as  Dean  West,  of  Princeton,  points  out, 
education  has  become  a  "business,"  and  "universities  are  cor- 
porations like  banks,  railroads,  factories,  department  stores." 
"The  trustees  are  the  proprietors,  the  president  the  manager, 
the  professors  the  employees,  and  the  students  the  capricious 


"Three    Phi    Beta   Kappa   Addresses.     Bv   Charles    Francis   Adams, 
Boston  and   New  York:    Houghton,  Mifflin   &  Co.,   1907. 


PROF.  EDWIN  MIMS  237 

customers."  To  meet  this  condition  Mr.  Adams  suggests  a 
breaking  up  of  the  larger  college  into  smaller  colleges,  very 
much  like  the  colleges  of  Oxford  and  Cambridge,  where  there 
would  be  a  smaller  group  of  students  personally  supervised  by 
a  master  or  president  or  dean.  Dean  West  tells  the  story  of 
the  first  year  of  the  preceptorial  system  at  Princeton,*  giving  a 
rather  optimistic  account  of  its  effect  on  the  reading,  conver- 
sation and  general  character  of  the  students.  The  reading  of 
this  chapter  causes  one  to  think  that  President  Wilson's  scheme 
is  the  most  important  contribution  that  has  been  made  to  the 
problem  of  higher  education  during  the  past  decade. 

Another  serious  evil  affecting  modern  scholarship  is  pointed 
out  by  such  writers  as  Mr.  Bliss  Perry  in  his  ' '  Amateur  Spirit, ' ' 
and  more  recently  by  Professor  Barrett  Wendell  in  his  article 
on  French  universities  in  Scribner's  Magazine.  Extreme  -spe- 
cialization has  undoubtedly  had  its  effect  in  narrowing  the  sym- 
pathies of  men.  Some  one  has  said  that  a  specialist  must  know 
more  than  any  one  else  about  the  things  that  are  not  worth 
knowing.  "How  far  can  this  special  development,  this  purely 
professional  habit  of  mind,  proceed  without  injury  to  the  sym- 
metry of  character,  without  impairing  the  varied  and  spontane- 
ous and  abundant  play  of  human  powers  which  gives  joy  to  life  ? " 
asks  Mr.  Perry.  And  in  answer  he  pleads  for  the  union  of  the 
generous  spirit  of  the  amateur  with  the  method  of  the  pro- 
fessional, for  ' '  breadth  of  interest  as  well  as  depth  of  technical 
research."  The  stories  of  extreme  specialization  that  have  been 
told  from  time  immemorial  on  German  scholars  have  their 
parallel  in  many  more  recent  American  scholars  whose  disser- 
tations and  monographs  have  frequently  been  monuments  of 
pedantry.  It  is  no  wonder  that  earnest  men  become  impatient 
with  scholarship  when  it  concerns  itself  so  often  about  purely 
technical  and  unessential  things. 

"Tho  most  ominous  sign  in  American  education  to-day,"  says 
President  Hyde,  "is  the  fact  that  a  certain  class  of  institutions 
are  filling  up  their  chairs  with  men  who  have  indeed  met  rhe 
technical  requirements  of  graduate  study,  men  who  are  capped 

*  American  Liberal  Education,  By  Andrew  Fleming  West.  New  York: 
Charles    Scribner's    Sons,    1907. 


238  LEARNING  FROM  OUR  NEIGHBORS 

in  a  thesis  and  gowned  in  a  doctor's  degree,  but  who  lack  "he 
grasp  of  their  subject  as  a  living,  growing  whole. ' '  To  the  same 
effect  writes  Dean  West  of  unenlightened  specialization :  "  It  has 
now  become  a  very  fair  question  whether  the  subdivision  of 
topics  has  not  gone  so  far  that  not  only  the  perception  of  rela- 
tive values  is  clouded,  but  even  the  community  of  intellectual 
interest  among  our  higher  students  is  being  destroyed.  Cer- 
tainly many  of  our  scholars  seem  to  be  subjects  of  one  or  another 
petty  principality  rather  than  freemen  in  the  great  common- 
wealth of  knowledge.  *  *  *  We  are  not  objecting  to  spe- 
cialization— far  from  it— but  solely  to  the  study  of  the  un- 
important. And  this  may  take  many  forms.  It  may  take  the 
form  of  investigating  something  which,  when  ascertained,  is 
found  to  be  a  trifle.  Or  it  may  take  the  form  of  solemnly 
proving  the  obvious  by  an  elaborate  array  of  statistics. ' ' 

In  a  word,  we  have  Germanized  too  much.  Professor  Wendell 
says:  "The  more  I  saw  of  them  [French  universities]  the  more 
I  was  confirmed  in  my  belief  that  American  learning  would  be 
greatly  strengthened  if  more  of  our  graduate  students  came 
under  French  influence.  The  influence  of  German  scholarship 
on  America  during  the  past  ninety  years  has  been  admirable, 
but  perhaps  excessive.  It  has  taught  us  a  respect  for  fact  ind 
method  which  our  earlier  learning  lacked.  It  has  tended  at 
the  same  time  to  encourage  the  notion  that  the  object  of  all 
learning  is  the  methodical  collection  of  facts. ' ' 

Such  specialization  has  not  only  narrowed  the  lives  of 
teachers,  but  has  had  a  blighting  influence  on  college  students. 
There  has  developed  in  college  communities  an  indifferentism, 
a  spirit  of  criticism  that  tends  to  become  cynicism,  a  contempt 
for  anything  that  approaches  the  popular,  that  is  baleful  in  its 
influence  on  younger  minds.  The  man  who  cares  little,  who 
has  an  infinite  capacity  for  being  bored,  is  only  too  common  a 
phenomenon.  Mr.  Perry's  diagnosis  of  this  disease  in  his  chap- 
ter on  "Indifferentism"  should  be  read  in  every  college  com- 
munity. It  is  the  presence  of  this  quality  that  explains  academic 
sterility— the  critic  who  knows  literature  technically,  but  cannot 
produce  it;  the  historian  who  gathers  facts,  but  cannot  vitalize 
them,  or  who  "takes  both  sides  in  the  same  paragraph";  the 


PROF.   EDWIX   MIMS 

philosopher  who  is  so  sympathetic  with  every  point  of  view  that 
he  has  no  definite  conclusions  of  his  own;  the  teacher  of  the 
classics  who  emphasizes  the  purely  technical  phases  of  his  work 
and  never  feels  the  glory  that  was  Greece  or  the  grandeur  that 
was  Rome. 

It  is  no  wonder  that  the  genial  essayist  of  Cambridge,  Mr. 
Crothers,  was  moved,  in  view  of  his  academic  environment,  to 
write  a  paper  on  the  "Honorable  Points  of  Ignorance,"  in  which 
he  says:  "While  the  aggregate  of  intellectual  wealth  has  in- 
creased, the  individual  workers  are  being  reduced  to  penury. 
It  is  a  pathetic  illustration  of  'Progress  and  Poverty.'  Man 
was  interested  in  the  universe  long  before  he  began  to  study 
it  scientifically.  He  dreamed  about  it,  he  mused  over  its  mys- 
teries, he  talked  about  its  more  obvious  aspects.  And  it  is  as 
interesting  now  as  it  ever  was." 

Mr.  Perry  relates  the  following  incident:  "I  remember  com- 
plaining, long  ago,  to  a  venerable  professor,  as  we  were  walking 
together  to  morning  chapel,  that  a  required  chapel  service  in- 
volved a  costly  expenditure  of  time,  and  that  the  German  schol- 
ars were  steadily  drawing  ahead  of  their  American  rivals  be- 
cause, for  one  reason,  they  saved  that  half-hour  a  day.  His 
reply  was  very  fine:  'If  you  are  turning  a  grindstone,  every 
moment  is  precious;  but  if  you  are  doing  a  man's  work  the 
inspired  moments  are  precious. ' '  This  remark  suggests  a  most 
serious  lack  in  contemporary  university  life.  While  I  do  not 
believe  that  American  universities  are  hot-beds  of  infidelity  :nd 
atheism,  I  am  thoroughly  convinced  that  the  religious  atmosphere 
that  prevails  in  them  is  not  what  it  should  be.  It  is  not  so 
much  an  avowed  opposition  to  religion,  as  an  indifference  to  it, 
a  tendency  to  agnosticism.  This  cannot  but  be  a  source  of 
regret  to  all  those  who  believe  that  the  ultimate  value  of  knowl- 
edge is,  as  Lord  Bacon  said  long  ago,  "the  glory  of  God  and 
the  relief  of  man's  estate."  In  our  emphasis  on  the  intolerance 
and  bigotry  of  the  Church,  have  we  not  gone  to  the  extreme 
of  intellectual  intolerance  and  bigotry?  Too  often  college  pro- 
fessors fail  to  distinguish  between  sentiment  and  sentimentalism, 
between  superstition  which  passes  away  and  religion  which  will 
endure  as  long  as  the  heart  of  man,  between  the  form  and  the 


240  LEARNING  FROT.I  OUR  NEIGHBORS 

essence  of  Christianity,  between  Christ  and  His  often  misguided 
interpreters. 

Now  this  is  a  source  of  deep  regret  if,  as  Professor  J.ames 
says,  "it  makes  a  tremendous  emotional  and  practical  difference 
to  one  whether  we  accept  the  universe  in  the  drab  discolored 
way  of  stoic  resignation  or  with  the  passionate  happiness  of 
Christian  saints.  The  difference  is  as  great  as  that  between 
passivity  and  activity,  as  that  between  the  defensive  and  ag- 
gressive mind."  I  am  not  pleading  for  a  mediasval  ecclesiasti- 
cism.  I  fully  accept  many  of  the  conclusions  of  modern  science 
and  modern  criticism,  but  still  maintain  that  one  may  do  all 
this  and  still  be  aggressively  and  vitally  Christian.  I  do  not 
believe  with  the  professor  of  philosophy  at  Harvard  that,  with 
the  exception  of  Greek  philosophy  and  Greek  art,  the  greatest 
contribution  to  the  civilization  of  the  world  is  the  Christian  re- 
ligion. I  believe  rather  with  Robert  Browning,  that 

"The  acknowledgment  of  God  in  Christ 
Accepted  by  thy  reason,  solves  for  thee 
All  questions  in  the  earth  and  out  of  it." 

Suppose  it  should  turn  out  in  the  end  that  Browning  was 
right  and  not  Arnold  or  Huxley,  that  Phillips  Brooks  was  right 
and  not  Emerson;  suppose  we  should  see  that,  after  all  the  at- 
tacks that  have  been  made  on  the  Christian  Church  and  upon 
the  truth  of  revealed  religion,  we  should  find  the  ages  rolling 
the  other  way.  If  in  some  respects  our  present  age  seems  )ike 
an  age  of  prose  and  reason,  the  next  may  well  be  an  age  of 
faith.  May  we  not  trust  that  the  colleges  will  not  be  the  last 
places  to  feel  the  mighty  resurging  of  great  faith  and  aspira- 
tion? As  one  reads  the  baccalaureate  addresses  of  President 
Hadley,*  he  feel?  that  in  their  bold  proclaiming  of  the  Christian 
ideal  to  the  students  of  Yale  they  are  a  most  hopeful  sign.  Lack- 
ing brillancy  of  thought  or  charm  of  style,  they  are  pervaded 
with  a  spirit  of  genuine  piety  and  old-fashioned  morality. 

I  have  thus  suggested  to  you  some  of  the  phases  of  contem- 
porary life  in  our  American  colleges  and  universities  that  seem 
to  me  to  be  of  great  consequence  to  those  of  us  who  are  working 

•Baccalaureate  Address.     By  Arthur  T.  Hadley.  New  York:  Charles 
Scribner's    Sons,    1907. 


PROF.  EDWIN  MIMS  241 

in  the  South.  To  meet  the  questions  suggested  here  we  must 
have  men  of  tireless  energy,  of  consecrated  spirit,  of  construc- 
tive minds.  We  shall  not  accept  blindly  anything  that  comes 
to  us  from  elsewhere;  we  shall  examine  all  things  in  the  light 
of  their  results  and  in  the  light  of  our  own  individual  social 
life.  We  shall  have  the  ability  to  discriminate,  to  be  receptive 
and  open-minded,  and  yet  alert  and  inquisitive.  If  we  work 
in  this  spirit  and  in  the  light  of  all  these  experiences  and  ten- 
dencies, we  have,  I  thoroughly  believe,  one  of  the  greatest 
chances  that  ever  fell  to  the  lot  of  men.  If  the  next  genera- 
tion of  leaders  are  equal  to  their  task  we  shall  see  a  fruitage 
that  will  make  the  heart  of  the  nation  glad.  Because  we  have 
fought  the  battle,  and  have  engaged  in  a  mighty  creative  move- 
ment the  republic,  and  indeed  the  world,  will  have  need  of  us. 

Time  was  when  Southern  men,  seeking  larger  opportunities, 
went  North  and  West.  There  have  not  been  in  the  South  until 
recently  the  chances  that  ambitious,  large-minded  men  in  certain 
callings  demanded.  And  so  throughout  the  nation  to-day  are 
scattered  the  sons  of  the  South.  But  is  there  not  to-day  the 
call  for  Southern  men  to  stay  here  and  work  heroically  and 
joyfully  at  the  great  tasks  that  now  loom  up  before  them? 
The  South  is  now,  as  Emerson  said  of  America,  "the  land  of 
opportunity" — not  because  we  have  a  perfect  civilization,  but 
a  very  imperfect  one;  not  because  tasks  are  easy,  but  difficult 
enough  to  call  out  all  the  best  powers  of  intellect,  emotion  <md 
will. 


In  accordance  with  the  custom  of  previous  meetings,  the  Chair- 
man announced  that  the  further  exercises  of  the  evening  would 
consist  of  informal  speeches  by  various  members  of  the  Con- 
ference, and  introduced  as  the  first  speaker  Dr.  St.  Clair  Mc- 
Kelway,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

Dr.  McKelway  made  a  few  remarks,  in  which  he  congratu- 
lated the  officers  and  delegates  of  the  Conference  on  the  success 
of  the  whole  meeting,  on  the  valuable  variety  of  timely  papers, 
and  on  the  forcible  and  earnest  character  of  the  debates  that 
had  been  drawn  out,  etc. 


--12  LEARNING  FROM  OUR  NEIGHBORS 

The  next  speaker  was  Hon.  A.  C.  True,  Director  of  the  U.  S. 
Government  Station,  Washington,  D.  C.,  who  spoke  as  follows: 

In  summing  up  my  impressions  of  this  Conference,  the  most 
striking  fact  has  been  the  breadth  of  view  of  educational  prob- 
lems which  has  characterized  its  proceedings.  The  subjects  dis- 
cussed have  covered  a  wide  range,  from  the  university  down  to 
the  elementary  school.  They  have  included  general  questions 
regarding  the  organization  and  work  of  various  kinds  of  -;du- 
cational  institutions,  as  well  as  specific  problems  in  literary, 
scientific  and  industrial  education.  Thus  the  Conference  is  evi- 
dently attempting  to  get  a  wide  understanding  of  the  educational 
needs  of  the  South,  while  it  is  at  the  same  time  seeking  to  find 
practical  measures  for  the  immediate  improvement  of  the  edu- 
cational system  of  this  great  region. 

It  is  a  most  fortunate  thing  that  this  body  takes  this  attitude. 
For  in  this  way  individuals  interested  in  particular  phases  of 
education  have  ample  opportunity  to  present  their  views,  and 
at  the  same  time  the  interchange  of  different  views  leads  to 
conservative  opinion  and  action  by  this  influential  body. 

In  regard  to  agricultural  education,  for  example,  in  which, 
of  course,  I  am  naturally  most  interested,  we  have  had  different 
points  of  view  brought  out  here  to-day.  This  is  well,  because 
the  whole  subject  of  agricultural  education  is  quite  broad.  And 
we  need  to  keep  in  mind  that  no  one  plan,  however  attractive, 
is  likely  to  affect  more  than  a  restricted  field  in  this  branch  of 
education.  Besides  demonstration  fields,  we  shall  need  the  teach- 
ing of  agricultural  subjects  in  elementary  schools,  high  schools, 
normal  schools,  colleges  and  universities  if  we  are  to  have  a 
satisfactory  and  far-reaching  system  of  agricultural  education. 
We  should  therefore  give  proper  attention  to  the  development 
of  all  these  agencies  for  the  instruction  of  our  rural  people  and 
their  leaders  in  the  scheme  and  practice  of  this  fundamental 
industry. 

A  great  educational  ferment  is  now  going  on  in  the  South. 
For  this  reason  a  representative  body  like  this  Conference,  whose 
membership  is  composed  of  influential  persons  brought  together 
from  many  regions  and  walks  of  life,  serves  a  very  important 


PROF.   EDWLX  MIMS  24'} 

function  as  a  conservative  and  yet  progressive  agency  for  the 
discussion  of  educational  problems  and  the  formulation  of  plans 
for  the  educational  advancement  of  the  South. 

Other  addresses  were  made  by  Hon.  George  W.  Gordon,  of 
Memphis,  Tenn.,  and  Mr.  Josephus  Daniels,  of  Raleigh,  N.  C. 
It  is  cause  for  regret  that  no  report  of  these  addresses  is  avail- 
able for  publication. 

On  motion,  the  Chairman  declared  the  Tenth  Conference  for 
Education  in  the  South  adjourned. 


INCIDENTAL  EVENTS 


As  in  previous  years,  the  State  Superintendents'  Association 
of  the  Southern  States  held  their  annual  meeting  in  connection 
with  the  Conference.  The  following  superintendents  were  pres- 
ent :  O.  B.  Martin,  of  South  Carolina ;  J.  B.  Aswell,  of  Louisiana ; 
W.  B.  Merritt,  of  Georgia ;  H.  L.  Whitfield,  of  Mississippi ;  H.  C. 
Gunnels,  of  Alabama;  J.  J.  Doyne,  of  Arkansas;  J.  H.  Fuqua, 
Sr.,  of  Kentucky ;  T.  C.  Miller,  of  West  Virginia ;  J.  Y.  Joyner, 
of  North  Carolina.  There  were  also  present  ex-Superintendents 
J.  H.  Hinemon,  of  Arkansas;  I.  W.  Hill,  of  Alabama,  and  S. 
A.  Mynders,  of  Tennessee.  These  were  elected  honorary  mem- 
bers of  the  Association,  and  invited  to  attend  its  sessions  and 
take  part  in  the  discussions.  The  meetings  were  in  the  nature 
of  round-table  conferences,  at  which  there  was  a  free  exchange 
of  views  and  experiences  on  all  phases  of  the  work  of  the  Super- 
intendent of  Public  Instruction.  There  were  special  discussions 
on  public  high  schools,  compulsory  attendance,  recent  progressive 
legislation  in  the  Southern  States,  and  the  campaign  for  educa- 
tion and  the  best  plans  for  carrying  it  on  next  year. 

Informal  meetings  of  the  members  of  the  Southern  Education 
Board  were  held  in  one  of  the  private  rooms  of  the  hotel  on 
Wednesday  and  Thursday.  Those  present  were:  E.  A.  Alder- 
man, Wallace  Buttrick,  P.  P.  Claxton,  G.  S.  Dickerman,  Henry 
E.  Fries,  H.  B.  Frissell,  S.  C.  Mitchell,  Edgar  Gardner  Murphy 
and  George  Foster  Peabody.  There  were  profitable  discussions 
on  many  phases  of  the  educational  movement. 

The  Federations  of  Women's  Clubs  in  a  number  of  States 
and  the  Associations  for  the  Improvement  of  Public  Schools 
were  numerously  represented  in  the  membership  of  the  Con- 
ference, and  the  opportunity  was  improved  for  consultation  and 
valuable  interchange  of  views  upon  the  practical  work  of  these 


INCIDENTAL  EVENTS  245 

organizations.  The  opinion  was  general  that  a  field  of  increas- 
ing usefulness  was  opening  in  connection  with  the  school  system, 
and  that  efforts  should  be  made  in  each  State  to  extend  the 
helpful  co-operation  of  such  Clubs  and  Associations. 

An  especially  profitable  feature  of  this  Conference  was  The 
arrangement  for  meetings  of  the  delegates  by  States  on  Wed- 
nesday afternoon.  The  hotel  offered  the  advantage  of  commo- 
dious rooms  for  each  delegation ;  and,  meeting  thus  by  them- 
selves, it  was  possible  to  discuss  questions  of  importance  to 
the  several  States  with  the  greatest  freedom  and  to  form  definite 
plans  of  action.  I  am  writing  this  account  in  the  month  of  June, 
two  months  after  the  assembly  at  Pinehurst,  and  reports  that 
have  come  from  a  number  of  States  indicate  that  important 
results  are  already  appearing. 

The  delegation  from  Georgia,  numbering  forty-four,  organised 
by  the  election  of  Mr.  S.  M.  Inman,  of  Atlanta,  as  Chairman; 
and  Professor  M.  M.  Parks,  of  Milledgeville,  as  Secretary;  and 
after  earnest  discussion,  resolved  to  invite  fifty  influential  citi- 
zens of  Georgia,  with  Mr.  Inman  as  Chairman,  to  constitute  a 
committee  "who  should  meet  to  discuss  and  formulate  plans  for 
the  furtherance  of  the  educational  interests  of  Georgia. ' '  These 
citizens  for  the  most  part  responded  to  the  invitation,  and  met 
in  the  Senate  Chamber  of  the  State  Capitol  on  May  24th.  The 
committee  was  then  made  permanent,  and  practical  measures 
were  taken  for  the  systematic  advancement  of  educational  in- 
terests throughout  the  State.  Of  this  meeting  the  State  School 
Commissioner,  in  a  circular  letter  to  the  County  Commissioners, 
says: 

"The  State  Conference  of  Education,  composed  of  the  fifty  citizens 
appointed  by  Mr.  S.  M.  Inman,  was  unique,  significant  and  inspiring. 
As  one  result,  increased  interest  in  education  is  manifest  among  school 
officials  and-  business  men  in  all  parts  of  the  State.  The  great  impulse 
and  efforts  of  those  interested  in  the  training  of  the  children  bids  fair 
to  unify  all  educational  work,  and  the  workers,  as  never  before." 

The  Tennessee  delegation  at  their  meeting  projected  a  Co- 
operative Educational  Association,  which  was  duly  organized  at 
a  meeting  held  in  Nashville.  This  meeting  was  largely  of  in- 


EDUCATION    IN    THE    SOUTH 

fluential  business  men,  as  in  Georgia,  and  principles  were  enun- 
ciated and  plans  outlined  to  be  employed  as  the  basis  of  an 
educational  campaign  for  the  next  two  years. 

There  were  over  twenty  delegates  from  Kentucky,  among  whom 
was  a  group  of  women  intent  on  awakening  the  women  of  their 
State  to  general  co-operation  in  a  movement  for  the  improve- 
ment of  public  schools,  especially  in  the  more  neglected  rural 
counties.  Conference  was  held  with  some  of  the  members  of 
the  Association  for  the  Betterment  of  Schools  in  North  Caro- 
lina with  reference  to  their  methods  of  procedure,  and  event- 
ually one  of  these  North  Carolina  women  was  engaged  to  visit 
Kentucky  for  the  purpose  of  assisting  in  the  organization  of 
similar  efforts  there.  A  recent  report  informs  us  that  this  ar- 
rangement is  now  in  the  course  of  fulfillment. 

The  meeting  of  the  large  delegation  from  Virginia  was  pro- 
ductive of  fresh  enthusiasm  for  the  already  remarkable  move- 
ment there,  and  the  formation  of  local  school  leagues  has  since 
borne  witness  to  the  influence  of  the  Conference  on  those  in 
attendance. 

The  representatives  from  South  Carolina  considered  the  grow- 
ing demands  of  their  School  Improvement  Association,  and  the 
new  fields  for  educational  enterprise  in  the  proposed  establish- 
ment of  rural  high  schools,  the  results  of  which  are  likely  to  be 
seen  in  all  forms  o-f  educational  activity. 

Officers  of  a  number  of  institutions  in  North  Carolina  and 
South  Carolina  united  in  forming  an  Association  of  Colleges  for 
the  Education  of  Women  in  these  two  States,  and  Dr.  J.  H. 
Clewell,  of  Winston-Salem,  was  chosen  president  of  the  new  or- 
ganization. 

Hardly  less  interesting  are  the  accounts  which  come  from 
Alabama,  Arkansas  and  other  States.  This  new  measure  of 
State  meetings  at  Pinehurst  was  one  of  the  significant  features 
of  the  Tenth  Conference,  and  seems  to  warrant  the  expectation 
that  it  will  become  a  leading  event  in  future  educational  con- 
ventions. 


INCIDENTAL  EVENTS  24:7 

The  Executive  Committee  of  the  Conference  met  on  Thurs- 
day afternoon  for  business.  Attention  was  called  to  the  necessity 
of  frequent  correspondence  among  the  members  of  the  com- 
mittee, and  of  active  effort  on  the  part  of  each  to  enable  the 
Conference  to  accomplish  the  objects  for  which  it  is  designed. 

On  motion,  it  was  voted  that  Mr.  Dickerman  be  asked  to  edit 
the  Proceedings  of  the  Tenth  Conference  as  he  has  done  those 
of  the  two  previous  years. 


Among  the  many  expressions  of  regret  from  friends  of  the 
Conference  who  were  prevented  from  attendance,  the  following 
was  received  from  the  Hon.  John  H.  Small,  of  Washington,  N.  C. : 

"I  cannot  be  present  during  the  sessions  of  the  Conference  this  week, 
but  I  send  my  greetings  and  my  cordial  sympathy  with  the  purposes  of 
the  Conference.  I  still  believe  that  the  promotion  of  public  education, 
particularly  in  the  villages  and  rural  sections  of  the  South,  is  the 
most  important  work  in  which  one  can  engage.  It  is  the  true  foun- 
dation upon  which  must  be  built  the  superstructure  of  industrial  pro- 
gress and  of  all  the  higher  movements  which  make  for  the  uplift  and 
betterment  of  the  people.  I  believe  that  the  men  and  women  from  the 
different  sections,  who  have  participated  in  these  Conferences,  have 
oeen  actuated  by  high  and  unselfish  motives,  and  that  we  have  been 
greatly  benefited  by  their  presence,  their  suggestions  and  their  help." 

Other  similar  expressions  prove  how  warm  a  place  these  an- 
nual gatherings  hold  in  the  hearts  of  those  who  have  been  present 
on  previous  occasions. 


TREASURER'S  REPORT 


CONFERENCE  FOR  EDUCATION  IN  THE  SOUTH. 
In  Account  with  WILLIAM  A.  BLAIR,  Treasurer. 

RECEIPTS. 

Balance  on  hand    %    189  17 

Received  from  Mr.  Fred.  Nathan  100  00 

Received  from  Mr.  J.  L.  Bobbitt 25  00 

Received  from  other  donations   3,655  76 


Total    $3,979  93 

DISBURSEMENTS. 

Chattanooga  Times  Printing  Company,  Proceedings $  «>05  08 

Berlin  &  Jones  Envelope  Co 15  00 

Postage     123  70 

Davie  Press    218  65 

Expenses,   1906    75  00 

Badges    28  80 

Other  expenses    2,755  33 

Express    1  00 

Balance  on   hand 255  44 

Outlook  Press,  cards   2  00 


Total    $3,979  93 

Respectfully  submitted, 

WILLIAM  A.  BLAIR,  Treasurer 


OFFICERS 


President — ROBERT  C.  OGDEN,  New  York  City. 
Vice-President — J.   GUNBY   JORDAN,   Columbus,   Georgia. 
Secretary — BENJAMIN  J.  BALDWIN,  Montgomery,  Alabama. 
Treasurer — WILLIAM  A.  BLAIR,  Winston-Salem,  North  Carolina. 

Executive  Committee — S.  C.  Mitchell,  Richmond,  Virginia;  W.  H. 
Hand,  Columbia,  South  Carolina;  Seymour  A.  Mynders,  Knoxville, 
Tennessee;  George  J.  Ramsey,  Lexington,  Kentucky;  Harry  Hodgson, 
Athens,  Georgia;  Paul  H.  Saunders,  Laurel,  Mississippi;  Erwin  Craig- 
head,  Mobile,  Alabama;  James  H.  Dillard,  New  Orleans,  Louisiana; 
John  H.  Hinemon,  Arkadelphia,  Arkansas. 


SUPERINTENDENTS  ASSOCIATION  OF  THE  SOUTHERN  STATES. 

President — J.  Y.  JOYNER,  Raleigh,  North  Carolina. 
Secretary — W.  B.  MERRITT,  Atlanta,  Georgia. 


vVOMEN'S   INTERSTATE   ASSOCIATION   FOR  THE   BETTERMENT 
OF  PUBLIC   SCHOOLS. 

President — MRS.  J.  LINDSAY  PATTERSON,  Winston-Salem,  North  Caro- 
lina. 

First  Vice-President — MRS.  J.  KENDRICK  COLLINS,  San  Antonio,  Texas. 
Second  V  ice-President — Miss  ARCHIE  SWAN  SON,  Whitmell,  Virginia. 
Secretary — MRS.  J.  D.  MATLOCK,  Birmingham,  Alabama. 
Treasurer — Miss  MARY  T.  NANCE,  ABBEVILLE,  South  Carolina. 


REGISTERED  MEMBERS 


J.  W.  Abercrombie  (and  Mrs.  Abercrombie),  president  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Alabama,  University,  Ala. 

Edwin  A.  Alderman,  president  of  the  University  of  Virginia,  Char- 
lottesville,  Va. 

Mrs.  Gertrude  A.  Alexander,  editor  Southern  Educational  Journal, 
Atlanta,  Ga. 

J.  H.  Allen,  superintendent  Surry  county  schools,  Elkin,  N.  C. 

J.  I.  Allen,  Dillond,  S.  C. 

R.  W.  Allen  (and  Mrs.  Allen),  superintendent  graded  schools,  San- 
ford,  N.  C. 

Wm.  J.  Allen,  principal  public  school,  Southern  Pines,  N.  C. 

Jos.  J.  Arnold,  lawyer,  member  Alabama  legislature,  Jacksonville, 
Ala. 

F.  B.  Arundell,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

Otis  Ashmore,  superintendent  schools,  Savannah,  Ga. 

Jas.  B.  Aswell,  State  supt.  public  education,  Baton  Rouge,  La. 

L.  N.  Bailey,  professor  of  agriculture,  Cornell  University,  Ithaca, 
N.  Y. 

Isabella  N.  Baldwin,  vice  prin.  and  teacher  of  English  and  physical 
culture  in  high  school,  Martinsville,  Va. 

J.  M.  Baldwin,  Johns  Hopkins  University,  Baltimore,  Md. 

^Virginia  Ball,  Washington,  D.  C. 

^Marshall  Ballard,  New  Orleans  Item,  New  Orleans,  La. 

"Waitman  Barbe,  assistant  to  president  University  of  West  Virginia, 
Morgantown,  W.  Va. 

Mrs.  C.  P.  Barnes,  chairman  ed.  com.  Federated  Clubs,  1026  Third 
Ave.,  Louisville,  Ky. 

David  C.  Barrow,  chancellor  University  of  Georgia,  Athens,  Ga. 

R.  M.  Barton,  Jr.,  judge  Tennessee  Court  of  Appeals,  Chattanooga, 
Tenn. 

W.  H.  Barton,  chief  clerk  Dept.  Ed.,  Columbia,  S.  C. 

E.  E.  Bass,  supt.  schools,  Greenville,  Miss. 

Mary  K.  Benedict,  president  Sweet  Briar  Institute,  Sweet  Briar,  Va. 

C.  J.  C.  Bennett,  professor  of  philosophy  and  education,  La.  State 

University,  Baton  Rouge,  La. 

Martha  Berry,  principal  Boys'  Industrial  School,  Rome,  Ga. 
W.  C.  Bivens,  editor,  Wadesboro,  N.  C. 

R.  E.  Blackwell,  president  of  Randolph-Macon  College,  Ashland,  Va. 
Wm.  A.  Blair  (and  Mrs.  Blair),  treasurer  Conference  for  Education 

in  the  South,  Winston-Salem,  N.  C. 


REGISTERED    MEMBERS  251 

Stella  Blount,  teacher,  Roper,  N.  C. 

Thos.  W.  Blount,  farmer,  Roper,  N.  C. 

Franz   Boas,   professor   of   anthropology,    Columbia  University,   New 

York. 

W.  G.  Brantley,  Jr.,  student  University  of  Georgia,  Brunswick,  Ga. 
E.  C.  Brooks,  supt.  schools,  editor  N.  C.  Journal  Education,  Golds- 

boro,  N.  C. 

J.  P.  W.  Brouse,  Somerset,  Ky. 

Ida  J.  Brown,  supervising  teacher,  Shaw  University,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 
J.  E.  Brown,  banker,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 
Jas  D.  Bruner,  professor  of  romance  languages,  University  of  N.  C., 

Chapel  Hill,  N.  C. 

Rev.  J.  S.  Bullitt   (and  Mrs.  Bullitt),  Pinehurst,  N.  C. 
Nora  S.  Burgess,  Pinebluff,  N.  C. 

C.  E.  Burts,  Edgefield,  S.  C. 
Tait  Butler,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

Wallace  Buttrick,  exec.  sec.  Gen.  Ed.  Board,  Teaneck,  N.  J. 

Jean  Cameron,  industrial  dept.,  Berea  College,  Berea,  Ky. 

Carrie  Lee  Campbell,  principal  Westminster  school,  Richmond,  Va. 

W.   D.   Carmichael,   superintendent  schools,   Durham,   N.   C. 

James  Cann  (and  Mrs.  Cann),  Blackstone,  Va. 

T.  L.  Caudle,  attorney  at  law,  Wadesboro,  N.  C. 

James  Cannon,  Jr.,  editor  Christian  Advocate,  Richmond,  Va. 

J.  B.  Carlyle,  Wake  Forest,  N.  C. 

D.  D.  Carroll,  Guilford  College,  N.  C. 
W.  Wallace  Carson,  Spartanburg,  S.  C. 

Bishop  T.  C.  Carter,  United  Brethren  Church,  Chattanooga,  Tenn. 

J.  E.  Chamberlin,  Mail  and  Express,  New  York. 

Jos.  Blount  Cheshire,  bishop  of  North  Carolina,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

Lora  Clark,   Montgomery,   Ala. 

P.  P.  Claxton,  professor  of  education,  University  of  Tenn.,  Knoxville 

Tenn. 
J.  H.  Clewell,  president  Salem  Academy  and  College,  Winston-Salem. 

N.  C. 
Collier  Cobb,  professor  of  geology,  University  of  N.  C.,  Chapel  Hill, 

N.  C. 
Mary  L.   Cobbe,   teacher  of  Latin   and   French,     Martinsville     high 

school,  Martinsville,  Va. 
Alec.  B.  Coffey,  Williamsburg,  Va. 
J.    S     '"'r.lps.  Washington.   D.   C. 
Mrs.  J.  W.  Coles,  Pinehurst,  N.  C. 

John  R.  Conniff,  assistant  supt,  public  schools,  New  Orleans,  La. 
Wesley  B.  Connolly,  mgr.  Seven  Springs  farm  and  industrial  school, 

Penland,  Mitchell  Co.,  N.  C. 

R.  D.  W.  Connor,  State  dept.  of  education,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 
Jos.  Cook,  supt.  city  schools,  Columbus,  Miss. 


252  EDUCATION    IN    THE    SOUTH 

Mrs.  John  Cooper,  3206  20th  St.  N.  W.,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Francis  R.  Cope,  Jr.,  member  board  of  trustees  Penn    school     St. 

Helena  Is.,  East  Washington  Lane,  Germantown,  Penn. 
W.   R.   Coppedge,   county   supt.   schools,   Richmond   Co.,    Rockingham, 

N.  C. 
Erwin  Craighead   (and  Mrs.  Craighead),  Mobile,   A.la.,  editor  of  the 

Mobile  Register. 
Miss  Craik,  Montgomery,  Ala. 
W.  A.  Crawford,  supt.  schools,  Arkadelphla,  Ark. 

A.  Cromorlie,  Bladen  Co.,  N.  C. 

Janie  Dalrymple,  teacher,  Sanford,  N.  C. 

R.  B.  Daniel,  supt.  schools,  Valdosta,  Ga. 

Jo&ephus  Daniels,  editor  Raleigh  News  and  Observer,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

Mrs.   L.   R.   Dashiell,   member   of  school   improvement   league,    201 

East  Franklin  St.,  Richmond,  Va. 
John  J.   Dargan,   principal   Sumter  Memorial   Academy,   Statesburg, 

S.  C. 

McDonald  Davis,  supt.  of  schools,  Bishopville,  Lee  Co.,  S.  C. 
Harry  Arnold  Davis,  student,  State  college  of  Ky.,  Lexington,  Ky. 
J.  E.  Davis,  editor  of  the  Southern  Workman,  Hampton  Institute, 

Hampton,  Va. 

W.  H.  Davis,  Danville,  Va. 

George  H.  Denny,  president  Washington  and  Lee  University,  Lexing- 
ton, Va. 
H.  J.  Derthick,  Hazel  Green,  Ky. 

G.  S.  Dickerman,  associate  secretary  Southern  Education  Board,  New 

Haven,  Conn. 
J.  E.  Dickey,  Oxford,  Ga. 
James  H.  Dillard,  dean  and  professor  of  Latin,  Tulane  University, 

New  Orleans,  La. 

B.  F.  Dixon,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

J.  J.  Doyne,  State  supt.  public  instruction,  Little  Rock,  Ark. 

E.  S.  Dreher,  supt.  public  schools,  Columbia,  S.  C. 

M.  L.  Duggan,  supt.  schools,  Hancock  Co.,  Sparta,  Ga. 

Mrs.  Dull,  member  of  school  committee,  Southern  Pines,  N.  C. 

Robert  W.   Durrett,   principal   Welsh   Neck  high   school,   Hartsville, 

S.  C. 
John  Duckett,  supt.  colored  and  Indian  State  normal  schools,  Raleigh, 

N.  C. 
S.  B.  Elliot,  Sewanee,  Tenn. 

E.  C.  Elmore,  county  supt.  education,  Spartanburg,  S.  C. 
Frank  Evans,  supt.  city  schools,  Spartanburg,  S.  C. 
Lawton  B.  Evans,  supt.  schools,  Augusta,  Ga. 

John  R.  Fisher,  student  and  fellow  of  Vanderbilt  University,  Nash- 
ville, Tenn. 

F.  B.  Fitzpatrick,  president  Va.  State  teacher's  association,  member 
executive  com.  Va.  cooperative  association,  Gate  City,  Va. 


REGISTERED    MEMBERS  253 

Mrs.  J.  E.  Foster,  Washington,  D.  C. 

J.  I.  Foust,  dean  N.  C.  State  normal  and  industrial  college,  Greens- 
boro, N.  C. 

Thos.  R.  Foust,  supt.  schools,  Guilford  Co.,  Greensboro,  N.  C. 

Robert  Frazer,  field  agent  for  Va.  of  Southern  Education  Board, 
Richmond,  Va. 

Fred  B.  Frazier,  supt.,  schools,  Rhea  Co.,  Dayton,  Tenn. 

H.  E.  Fries  (and  Mrs.  Fries),  member  Southern  Education  Board, 
Winston-Salem,  N.  C. 

A.  S.  Frissell,  New  York. 

H.  B.  Frissell  (and  Mrs.  Frissell),  principal  normal  and  agricultural 

institute,  member  Southern  Education  Board,  Hampton,  Va. 
James  H.  Fuqua,  Sr.,  supt.  public  instruction,  Frankfort,  Ky. 
George  H.  Gage,  Chester,  S.  C. 
Mrs.  Janie  G.  Gage,  Chester,  S.  C. 

F.  H.  Gaines,  president  Agnes  Scott  College,  Decatur,  Ga. 
L.  N.  Gaines,  Wake  Forest,  N.  C. 

S.  W.  Garrett,  supt.  schools,  Hartsville,  S.  C. 

W.  T.  Garrett,  supt.  schools,  Cedartown,  Ga. 

C.  H.  Gattis,  passenger  agent  Seabord  Air  Line  Railway,  N.  C. 

C.  B.  Gibson,  supt.  schools,  Columbus,  Ga. 

Mrs.  Martha  S.  Gielow,  president  Gen'l  Southern  industrial  educa- 
tional ass'n  of  Washington,  D.  C.,  Greensboro,  Ala. 

Harriet  E.  Giles,  principal  Spelman  Seminary,  Atlanta,  Ga. 

Wm.  H.  Glasson,  professor  of  economics,  Trinity  College,  Durham, 
N.  C. 

G.  R.   Glenn,   president  North   Ga.   agricultural  college,   Dahlonega, 
Ga. 

R.  B.  Glenn,  governor  of  North  Carolina,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 
Wm.  E.  Gonzales,  editor  The  State,  Columbia,  S.  C. 
Dorothy   Goodale,   Coolidge  Ave.,   Cambridge,   Mass. 
George  W.  Gordon,  member  U.  S.  Congress,  Memphis,  Tenn. 
A.  J.  Gray,  Richmond,  Va. 

Henry  T.  Gregory,  minister  in  charge  Emanuel  church,  Southern 
Pines,  N.  C. 

John  W.  Gulledge,  attorney  at  law,  Wadesboro,  N.  C. 

Harry  C.  Gunnels,  State  supt.  education,  Montgomery,  Ala. 

F.  P.  Habgood,  Oxford,  N.  C. 

P.  T.  Hale,  Louisville,  Ky. 

Barksdale  Hamlett,  supt.  city  schools,  Hopkinsville,  Ky. 

W.  H.  Hand,  professor  secondary  education  University  of  South  Caro- 
lina, Columbia,  S.  C. 

W.  C.  A.  Hap-rnel,  professor  State  normal  and  industrial  college, 
Greensboro,  N.  C. 

M.  D.  Hardin,  Charlotte,  N.  C. 

Earl  Harding,  of  The  New  York  World,  New  York. 


254  EDUCATION    IN    T11K    SOUTH 

P.  L.  Harned,  member  State  board  of  education,  supt.  Clarksville 

city  schools,  Clarksville,  Tenn. 
H.  R.  Harper,  Atlanta,  Ga. 
J.  S.  Harris,  Columbia,  S.  C. 
Mrs.  W.  T.  Harris,  president  Danville  education  ass'n,  1118  Main  St., 

Danville,  Va. 

Mary  Belt  Hawes,  Charlottesville,  Va. 
Mrs.  Eugene  B.  Heard,  gen'l  supt.  S.  A.  L.  free  travelling  library 

ass'n,  Middletown,  Ga. 
Mrs.  J.  W.  Heck,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

W.  H.  Heck,  professor  University  of  Virginia,  Charlottesville,  Va. 
Archibald  Henderson,  associate  professor  mathematics,  University  of 

North  Carolina,  Chapel  Hill,  N.  C. 
Lura   B.    Henderson,    student,    University   of   Tennessee,    Knoxville, 

Tenn. 
J.  Walter  Hendricks,  principal  elect  first  district  agricultural  school, 

Statesboro,  Ga. 
R.   G.   Hiden,   Birmingham   News,  Birmingham,  Ala. 


I.  W.  Hill,  Gadsden,  Ala. 

Mrs.  W.  B.  Hill,  president  school  improvement  club,  Athens,  Ga. 

John  fl.  Hinemon,  president  Henderson  College,  Arkadelphia,  Ark. 

P.  W.  Hinitt  (and  Mrs.  Hinitt),  president  Central  University,  Dan- 
ville, Ky. 

L.  L.  Hobbs,  president  Guilford  College,  Guilford  College  P.  O., 
N.  C. 

R.  P.  Hobson,  member  U.  S.  Congress,  Greensboro,  Ala. 

Harry  Hodgson   (and  Mrs.  Hodgson),  Athens,  Ga. 

Wm.  B.  Holland,  of  The  Outlook,  New  York. 

W.  D.  Holland,  supt.  schools  Edgefield  Co.,  Trenton,  S.  C. 

Mrs.  W.  R.  Hollowell,  president  women's  ass'n  for  betterment  ot 
public  schools,  Goldsboro,  N.  C. 

George  R.  Hovey,  president  Va.  Union  University,  Richmond,  Va. 

Carrie  L.  Howard,  teacher,  Sanford,  N.  C. 

James  A.  Hoyt,  of  The  News  and  Courier,  Charleston,  S.  C. 

H.  W.  Hubbard,  treasurer  American  Missionary  Association,  111 
Madison  Ave.,  New  York. 

B.  L.  Hughes,  supt.  city  schools,  Greenville,  S.  C. 

A.  B.  Hunter,  principal  St.  Augustine's  school,  (and  Mrs.  Hunter, 
superintendent  St.  Agnes  Hospital),  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

James  W.  Hunter,  Colorado  Springs,  Colorado. 

May  Hurlburt,  sec'y  Armstrong  Ass'n,  correspondent  Evening  Post, 
39  East  42nd  St.,  New  York. 

F.  H.  Hyatt,  Columbia,  S.  C. 

Elizabeth  Hyde,  Normal  and  Agricultural  Institute,  Hampton,  Va. 

S.  M.  Inman,  Atlanta,  Ga. 

Leah  D.  Jones,  State  Normal  College,  Greensboro,  N.  C. 

W.  M.  Jones,  supt.  N.  C.  military  academy,  Red  Springs,  N.  C. 


REGISTERED    MEMBERS  255 

J.  Y.  Joyner,  State  supt.  public  instruction,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

Harry  Pratt  Judson,  president  University  of  Chicago,  Chicago,  111. 

J.  B.  Keeny,  State  institute  conductor  of  La.,  Baton  Rouge,  La. 

J.  C.  Kendall,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

J.  L.  Kesler,  professor  of  biology  and  dean,  Baylor  University,  Waco, 

Texas. 

M.  L.  Kesler,  supt.  Baptist  orphanage,  Thomasville,  N.  C. 
Margaret  King,  Norfolk,  Va. 

J.  H.  Kirkland,  chancellor  Vanderbilt  University,  Nashville,  Tenn. 
Seaman  A.   Knapp,   special   agent  U.   S.   dept.   of  agriculture,   Lake 

Charles,  La. 
S.  Arthur  Knapp,  State  statistical  agent  U.  S.  dept.  of  agriculture, 

Lake  Charles,  La. 

A.  C.  Kuykendall,  president  South  Kentucky  College,  Hopkinsville. 
Ky. 

J.  W.  Kuykendall,  supt.  city  schools,  Fort  Smith,  Ark. 

W.   H.  Laird,  Montgomery  Advertiser,   Montgomery,  Ala. 

Walter  P.  Lawrence,  professor  of  English,  Elon  College,  Elon  Col- 
lege, N.  C. 

Otto  V.  Lee,  Jr.,  lawyer,  chairman  educational  committee  of  the 
Alabama  legislature,  Gadsden,  Etowah  Co.,  Ala. 

Margaret  C.  Limerick,  instructor  domestic  science  dept.,  Drexel  In- 
stitute, Philadelphia,  Penn. 

Mrs.  M.  A.  Lipscomb,  principal  Lucy  Cobb  Institute,  Athens,  Ga. 

M.  Little,  Wadesboro,  N.  C. 

Alice  Lloyd,  presiding  teacher,  Belmont  College,  Nashville,  Tenn. 

B.  G.  Lowrey,  president  Blue  Mountain  Female  College,  Miss. 
J.  Gray  McAllister,  president  Hampden-Sidney  College,  Va. 

Silas  McBee,  Jr.,  correspondent  N.  Y.  Tribune,  27  Nassau  St.,  New 

York. 
J.    P.   McConnell,    professor   of  -history,   Emory   and    Henry   College, 

Emory,  Va. 

Annie  Mclver,  teacher,  training  school,  N.  C.  State  normal  and  in- 
dustrial college,  Greensboro,  N.  C. 

Mrs.  Charles  D.  McTver.  N.  C.  State  norma.1  and  industrial  college, 
Greensboro,  N.  C. 

Duncan  R.  Mclver,  Sanford  graded  schools,  Sanford,  N.  C. 

A.  J.  McKelway,  assistant  secretary  national  child-labor  committee, 
Atlanta,  Ga. 

StClair  McKelway  (and  Mrs.  McKelway)  vice  chancellor  of  the  board 
of  regents  and  of  the  University  of  the  State  of  New  York,  21 
Monroe  PL,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

John  A.  McLeod,  principal  Raeford  Institute,  Raeford,  N.  C. 

Emma  McKinney,  teacher,  Sanford,  N.  C. 

Mrs.  Anthony  Foster  McKissick,  president  State  federation  women's 
clubs,  Greenwood,  S.  C. 

John  C.  McNeil,  of  the  Charlotte  Observer,  Charlotte,  N.  C. 

Mrs.  Frederick  W.  T.  McReynolds,  3241  R  St.,  Washington,  D.  C. 


256  EDUCATION    IN    THE    SOUTH 

D.  K.  McRae,  Hickory,  N.  C. 
R.  M.  Mann,  Wadesboro,  N.  C. 

O.  B.  Martin.  State  snot,  of  education.  Columbia,  S.  C. 

K.   G.   Ma.theson,  president  Georgia  School  of  Technology,  Atlanta, 

Ga. 
Mrs.    J.    D.    Matlock,    Alabama   committee   on   school   improvement, 

2227  Seventh  Ave.,  Birmingham,  Ala. 

B.  P.  Mebane  (and  Mrs.  Lily  C.  Morehead  Mebane),  Spray,  N.  C. 
S.  E.  Mercer,  financial  agent  for  Carolina  Methodist  College,  Maxton, 

N.  C. 

J.  G.  Merrill,  president  Fisk  University,  Nashville,  Tenn. 
W.  B.  Merritt,  State  school  commissioner,  Atlanta,  Ga. 

Charles  F.  Meserve  (and  Mrs.  Meserve),  president  Shaw  University, 
Raleigh,  N.  C. 

J.  C.  Metcalf,  professor  of  English,  Richmond  College,  Richmond, 
Va. 

E.  Lee  Middleton,  principal  Gary  high  school,  Gary,  N.  C. 
J.  D.  Miller,  Plainfield,  N.  J. 

Thomas  C.  Miller,  State  supt.  of  schools,  Charleston,  W.  Va. 

Edwin  Mims,  professor  of  English  literature,  Trinity  College,  Dur- 
ham, N.  C. 

R.  C.  Mitchell,  of  the  Associated  Press. 

S.  C.  Mitchell  (and  Mrs.  Mitchell),  professor  Richmond  College,  Rich- 
mond, Va. 

Mrs.  E.  E.  Moffitt,  vice  president  Woman's  Association  for  betterment 
of  schools,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

A.  P.  Montague,  Birmingham,  Ala. 

Frederick  W.  Moore,  professor  Vanderbilt  University,  Nashville,  Tenn. 

Ellen  Morris,  1619  Arch  St.,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Elizabeth  Morris,  1619  Arch  St.,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Irene  T.  Myers,  dean  of  women's  dept.,  Kentucky  University,  Lexing- 
ton, Ky. 

L.  B.  Musgrove,  Alabama. 

Edgar  Gardner  Murphy,  secretary  Southern  Education  Board,  Mont- 
gomery, Ala- 
Seymour  A.  Mynders,  supt.  city  schools,  ex-State  supt.  of  public  in- 
struction, Knoxville,  Tenn. 

Mary  T.  Nance,  teacher,  president  school  improvement  association  ol 
South  Carolina,  Abbeville,  S.  C. 

Helen  H.  Nelson,  teacher  of  history  in  high  school,  Martinsville,  Va. 

Wm.  G.  Neville,  president  Presbyterian  College  of  South  Carolina, 
Clinton,  S.  C. 

Helen  J.  Northrup,  teacher  girl's  school,  Albemarle,  N.  C. 

Mrs.  John  K.  Ottley,  Atlanta,  Ga. 

Mary  J.  Packard,  Atlanta,  Ga. 

R.  N.  Page  (and  Mrs  Page),  member  U.  S.  Congress,  Briscoe,  N.  C. 

F.  V.  N.  Painter,  professor  of  education,  Roanoke  College,  Salem,  Va. 


REGISTERED    MEMBERS  257 

Alice  N.  Parker,  principal  Richmond  training  school  for  kindergart- 
ners  and  supervisor  of  public  kindergartens,  Richmond,  Va. 

R.  S.  Parker,  student,  University  of  Georgia,  Atlanta,  Ga. 

M.  M.  Parks,  president  Georgia  Normal  and  Industrial  College,  Mill- 
edgeville,  Ga. 

Celestia  S.  Parish,  chair  of  psychology  and  pedagogy,  State  normal 
school,  Athens,  Ga. 

Henry  Griscom  Parsons,  dept.  of  children's  gardens,  New  York  Uni- 
versity summer  school,  29  West  Kfith  St.,  New  York. 

John  T.  Patrick  (and  Miss  Mabel  Patrick)  Wadesboro,  N.  C. 

A.  H.  Patterson,  University  of  Georgia,  Athens,  Ga. 

J.  K.  Patterson,  president  State  College  of  Kentucky,  Lexington,  Ky. 

Mrs.  Lindsay  Patterson,  president  Inter-State  Association  for  the 
betterment  of  public  schools,  Winston-Salem,  N.  C. 

Bruce  R.  Payne,  professor  secondary  education  University  of  Virgin- 
ia, Charlottesville,  Va. 

George  F.  Peabody,  treasurer  Southern  Education  Board,  Lake 
George,  N.  Y. 

Robert  P.  Pell,  president  of  Converse  College,  Spartanburg,  S.  C. 

Katherine  Pettit,  settlement  school,  Hindman,  Knott  Co.,  Ky. 

J.  H.  Phillips,  superintendent  city  schools,  Birmingham,  Ala. 

J.  M.  K.  Pittingan,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

George  A.  Plimpton,  publisher  school  and  college  text-books.  70  Fifth 
Ave.,  New  York. 

Clarence  H.  Poe,  editor  The  Progressive  Farmer,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

Edwin  M.  Poteat,  president  Furman  University,  Greenville,  S.  C. 

W.  L.  Poteat,  professor  Wake  Forest  College,  Wake  Forest,  N.  C. 

Jere  M.  Pound,  director  normal  dept.,  girls'  normal  and  industrial 
school,  Milledgeville,  Ga. 

J.  N.  Powers,  supt.  city  schools,  West  Point,  Miss 

W.  A.  Prince,  Loris,  S.  C.  ' 

Mrs.  Alex.  Purves  (and  Miss  Ruth  Purves),  Hampton,  Va. 

George  J.  Ramsey,  secretary  Central  University,  Lexington,  Ky. 

J.  Kent  Rawley,  lawyer,  secretary  co-operative  education  association 
of  Va.,  Richmond,  Va. 

Herbert  E.  Reynolds,  state  senator  Alabama  Legislature,  chairman 
committee  on  education,  Centreville,  Ala. 

J.  M.  Rhodes,  (and  Mrs.  Rhodes)  president  Littleton  College,  Lit- 
tleton, N.  C. 

E.  Riggs,  New  Orleans,  La. 

A.  J.  Ritchie,  principal  industrial  school,  Rabun  Gap,  Ga. 

Mrs.  Rurie  N.  Roark,  Eastern  Kentucky  normal  school,  Richmond, 
Ky. 

Mrs.   Lucy  H.   Robertson,    president    Greensboro    Female    College, 

Greensboro,  N.  C. 
L.  B.  Robeson,  trustee  and  president  alumni  association  of  Emory 

College,   Marietta,   Ga. 


258  EDUCATION    IX    THE    SOUTK 

Wickliffe  Rose,  agent  of  Peabody  Fund,  1021  Belmont  Ave.,  Nash- 
ville, Tenn. 

James  E.  Russell  (and  Mrs.  Russell),  dean  Teachers  College,  500 
West  121st  St.,  New  York. 

T.  R.  Sampson,  Austin,  Texas. 

T.  O.  Sandy,  director  of  demonstration  farm  work  in  Virginia,  Burke- 
ville,  Va. 

Miss  St.  Clair,  teacher,  Sanford,  N.  C. 

P.  H.  Saunders,  banker,  Laurel,  Miss. 

J.  Henry  Scattergood  (and  Mrs.  Scattergood),  representing  Chris- 
tiansburg  Industrial  Institute,  Va.,  648  Bourse  Bldg.,  Philadel- 
phia, Penn. 

H.  L.  Schmetz  (and  Mrs.  Schmetz),  banker,  Hampton,  Va. 

Viola  Schumaker,  instructor  in  normal  dept.,  Berea  College,  Berea, 
Ky. 

W.  T.  Sheehan,  of  the  Montgomery  Advertiser,  Montgomery,  Ala. 

Mary  C.  Shepperson,  head  of  geography  and  nature-study  in  State 
normal  school,  Athens,  Ga. 

Mildred  Shepperson,  head  of  history  dept.  in  state  normal  school, 
Athens,  Ga. 

George  Singleton,  Dover,  N.  J. 

C.  Alphonso  Smith,  dean  of  graduate  dept.,  University  of  North  Car- 
olina, Chapel  Hill,  N.  C. 

Anna  H.  Smith,  Buzzards  Bay,  Mass. 

Bessie  Green  Smith,  North  Truro,  Mass. 

Lollie  M.  Smith,  principal  state  normal  practice  school,  Athens,  Ga. 

W.  W.  Smith,  president  Randolph-Macon  College,  Lynchburg,  Va. 

L.  J.  Smith,  teacher,  Randolph-Macon  College,  Lynchburg,  Va. 

H.  N.  Snyder,  president  Wofford  College,  Spartanburg,  S.  C. 

Almon  E.  Spencer,  vice  president  Presbyterian  College  of  South  Car- 
olina, Clinton,  S.  C. 

W.  L.  Starling,  Danville,  Ky. 

Asa  Steele,  Sunday  dept.  Nerw  York  Times,  New  York. 

Mrs.  A.  S.  Steele,  founder  and  manager  of  the  Steele  Home  for  needy 
children,  Chattanooga,  Tenn. 

F.  L.  Stevens  (and  Mrs.  Stevens),  professor  of  botany  and  vegetable 
pathology,  N.  C.  College  agriculture  and  mechanical  arts,  W. 
Raleigh,  N.  C. 

Joseph  S.  Stewart,  professor  of  secondary  education  University  of 
Georgia,  Athens,  Ga. 

Isabel  S.  Stone,  "The  Lowell,"  501  W.  120th  St.,  New  York. 

Mrs.  H.  L.  Stone,  Louisville,  Ky. 

Mary  Stone,  settlement  school,   Hindman,   Knott  Co.,  Ky. 

Mrs.  J.  W.  E.  Sudler  (and  Miss  Sudler),  Philadelphia,  Penn. 

W.  K.  Tate,  principal  Memminger  normal  school,  member  State  board 
education,  Charleston,  S.  C. 

J.  J.  Taylor,  president  Georgetown  College,  Georgetown,  Ky. 
Agnes  W.  Taylor,  teacher,  Sanford,  N.  C. 


REGISTERED    MEMBERS  259 

J.  M.  Terrell,  governor  of  Georgia,  Atlanta,  Ga. 

W.  P.  Thirkeld,  president  Howard  University,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Lucy  B.   Thornton,   teacher,   Sanford,   N.    C. 

J.   G.   Thorp    (and   Miss  Alice  Thorp),    115   Brattle   St.,   Cambridge, 

Mass. 
John  A.  Tucker,  High  Point,  N.  C. 

A.  C.  True,  director,  office  of  experiment  stations,  U.  S.  dept.  of  agri- 
culture, Washington,  D.  C. 

Mary  Lamar  Turpin,  1319  Pine  St.,  Philadelphia,  Penn. 

Julia   S.    Tutwiler,    president   Alabama   normal    college,    Livingston, 

Ala. 

R.  T.  Vann,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 
John  B.  VanMeter,  dean  Woman's  College  of  Baltimore,  Baltimore, 

Md. 

C.  G.  Vardell,  president  Red  Springs  Seminary,  Red  Springs,  N.  C. 

J.  P.  Venable,  president  University  of  North  Carolina,  Chapel  Hill, 

N.  C. 
N.  W.  Walker,  professor  of  secondary  education,  University  of  North 

Carolina,  Chapel  Hill,  N.  C. 

D.  E.  Wallace,  model  and  industrial  school,  Heath  Springs,  S.  C. 
Patterson   Wardlaw,   professor   of   pedagogy,     University     of    South 

Carolina,  Columbia,  S.  C. 
Edward  T.  Ware,  chaplain  of  Atlanta  University,  Atlanta,  Ga. 

E.  Watson,  North  Carolina. 

George  W.  White,  professor  of  mathematics,  Guilford  College,  N.  C. 
Walter  M.  White,  secretary  Kentucky  University,  Lexington,  Ky. 
H.  L.  Whitfleld,  State  supt.  education,  Jackson,  Miss. 
E.  Stagg  Whitin,  New  York. 

B.  Lawton  Wiggins,  vice  chancellor  University  of  the  South,  Sewanee, 
Tenn. 

J.  R.  Williams,  Marion,  S.  'C. 

E.  M.  Williamson,  Darlington,  S.  C. 

E.  Mclver  Williamson,  farmer  Mont  Clare,  S.  C. 

S.  P.  Wilson,  superintendent  of  graded  schools,  Cherryville,  Gaston 

Co.,  N.  C. 

Mrs.  William  Potter  Wilson,  Rosemont,  Penn. 
M.  O.  Winfrey,  Middlesborough,  Ky. 

George  T.  Winston,  president  N.  C.  College  of  agriculture  and  me- 
chanical arts,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

John  W.  Woody,  business  agent  Slater  industrial  and  State  normal 
school  for  negroes,  Winston-Salem,  N.  C. 

J.  C.  Woodward,  president  Georgia  military  academy,  College  Park, 
Ga. 

Thomas  J.  Woofter,  professor  of  philosophy  and  education,  Univer- 
sity of  Georgia,  Athens,  Ga. 


Educational  Progress  in  the  South 


A  Review  of  Five  Years 


Field  Reports  of  the  Southern  Education  Board 


CONTRIBUTORS: 

Virginia — E.  A.  Alderman,  H.  B.  Frissell,  S.  C.  Mitchell,  Robert 

Frazer,  J.  Kent  Rawley. 
North  Carolina—  Chas.  D.  Mclver,  J.  Y.  Joyner,  H.  E.  Fries, 

Chas.  L.  Coon. 

South  Carolina—  0.  B.  Martin,  W.  H.  Hand. 
Georgia— -W.  B.  Merritt,  T.  J.  Woofter,  Mrs.  Walter  B.  Hill. 
Tennessee— S.  A.  Mynders,  P.  P.  Claxton,  Chas.  W.  Dabney. 
Alabama— Edgar  Gardner  Murphy,    Sydney   J.    Bowie,    H.    C. 

Gunnels,  I.  W.  Hill. 

Mississippi — H.  L.  Whitfield,  R.  B.  Fulton. 
Louisiana— J.  H.  Dillard,  J.  B.  Aswell. 
Texas— David  F.  Houston. 


COMPILED     AND     EDITED    BY 

G.   S.    DICKERMAN 
WITH    THE    ASSISTANCE   OF 

WICKLIFFE    ROSE. 


Published  by   Direction  of  the   Board. 
October,  1907. 


The  Southern  Education  Board 


ROBERT  C.  OGDEN 
J.  L.  M.  CUERY* 
EDWIN  A.  ALDERMAN 
CHARLES  D.  MC!VER* 
CHARLES  W.  DABNEY 
WALLACE  BUTTRICK 
HOLLIS  B.  FRISSELL 
GEORGE  FOSTER  PEABODY 
ALBERT  SHAW 
WALTER  H.  PAGE 
WILLIAM  H.  BALDWIN,  JR.* 
HUGH  H.  HANNA 
EDGAR  GARDNER  MURPHY 
FRANK  R.  CHAMBERS 

G.  S.  DlCKERMAN 

DAVID  F.  HOUSTON 
WALTER  BARNARD  HILL* 
S.  C.  MITCHELL 
HENRY  E.  FRIES 
SYDNEY  J.  BOWIE 
P.  P.  CLAXTON 

*Deceased. 


Educational  Progress  in  the  South 


i.  CITIZENS'  MEETINGS  AND  ORGANIZATION. 

The  annual  conferences,  started  at  Capon  Springs  in  1898, 
have  grown  into  significant  assemblies  to  which  people  inter^ 
ested  in  education  come  from  all  of  the  Southern  States;  they 
have  also  taken  on  organization  with  which  to  do  definite  things' 
and  to  work  systematically  toward  the  ends  proposed. 

Something  not  unlike  this  is  seen  in  the  several  States.  This 
whole  movement  proceeds  by  citizens'  meetings  culminating  in 
organization. 

In  Virginia,  soon  after  the  formation  of  this  Board,  an  educa- 
tional campaign  was  undertaken  under  the  leadership  of  Pro- 
fessor Tucker  and  Dr.  Frazer,  in  which  the  people  of  a  county 
were  invited  to  meet  at  their  courthouse  to  hear  a  discussion 
about  the  needs  of  their  children.  The  first  results  were  an 
aroused  popular  sentiment  and  a  general  recognition  of  the  im- 
portance of  having  better  schools.  The  next  step  was  to  crys- 
talize  this  sentiment  into  an  instrument  for  improving  the 
schools.  The  outcome  was  the  local  ''league"  to  attend  to  the 
interests  of  the  community  and  the  "Co-operative  Education 
Association"  to  advance  such  interests  as  were  common  to  all 
parts  of  the  State.  There  are  now  324  of  these  leagues.  Within 
a  few  months  the  negroes,  under  the  lead  of  the  president  of 
the  State  Industrial  School  at  Petersburg,  have  adopted  the 
same  method,  and  ten  local  associations  have  been  organized, 
extending  into  five  different  counties. 

Through  such  organizations  popular  meetings  are  continually 
held  for  the  accomplishment  of  particular  objects  connected 
with  school  improvement,  and  a  general  meeting  is  held  at  some 
convenient  center  once  each  year.  Of  the  local  meetings,  580 
are  reported  in  a  single  year.  The  general  meeting  at  Richmond 
last  ye°r  w*»s  attended  by  over  1600  delegates  from  the  local 
bodies,  including  Trustees  and  County  Supervisors,  and  was 


264  EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS    IN    THE   SOUTH. 

pronounced  the  "largest  educational  gathering  in  the  history 
of  the  State." 

In  North  Carolina,  under  the  leadership  of  Messrs.  Mclver 
and  Alderman,  educational  campaigning  had  become  an  insti- 
tution and  a  habit  long  before  the  existence  of  this  Board.  This 
was  a  great  advantage,  and  the  fresh  efforts  now  put  forth 
were  the  more  fruitful  because  they  were  along  lines  already 
familiar.  Dr.  Mclver 's  inspiring  personality  drew  to  him  many 
efficient  helpers,  and  the  movement  in  this  State  has  gained 
an  ever-increasing  breadth  and  power.  Nor  does  it  flag  since  the 
leader's  departure.  The  State  Superintendent  writes,  in  a  let- 
ter not  a  month  old,  ' '  An  educational  campaign  has  been  carried 
on  without  cessation  during  the  year,"  and  the  results  are  writ- 
ten large  in  the  figures  of  all  the  reports.  The  name  adopted 
ior  the  local  organization  in  this  State  is  "Association  for  the 
Betterment  of  Public  Schools  and  Schoolhouses. "  These  Asso- 
ciations are  composed  of  women,  though  doing  their  work  under 
the  constant  oversight  of  the  superintendents  and  other  gentlemen 
interested  in  educational  progress.  In  more  .than  fifty  counties 
are  to  be  found  these  associations  having  a  county  organization, 
and  under  this  a  community  association  for  each  particular 
school.  This  State  has  a  vigorous  Teachers'  Association  which 
admits  to  its  membership  prominent  citizens  interested  in  the 
teacher's  work.  It  has  also  an  organization  of  the  county 
superintendents  with  successful  annual  meetings.  Through  these 
several  organizations,  local  and  general,  expression  is  given  to 
the  rising  sentiment  of  the  North  Carolina  people. 

In  South  Carolina  the  local  organizations  are  similar  to  those 
in  North  Carolina,  but  are  called  "School  Improvement  Asso- 
ciations." A  year  ago  it  was  reported  that  1,000  members  were 
enrolled ;  now  the  State  Superintendent  says  there  are  2,000,  and 
adds  that  this  is  an  "important  auxiliary  for  improving  the 
schoolhouses  and  their  surroundings."  This  State  has  also  a 
good  Teachers'  Association  with  helpful  annual  meetings.  At 
the  last  meeting,  a  few  weeks  ago,  there  was  also  held  a  confer- 
ence of  more  general  character  "which  promises  to  unify  and 
systematize  the  schools  and  raise  the  standards  of  the  colleges 
of  the  State." 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH.          265 

In  Georgia,  the  State  Superintendent  reports,  under  a  re- 
cent date:  "Effective  educational  rallies  are  being  held  all  over 
the  State  on  an  average  of  one  a  day.  The  Farmers'  Union  has 
requested  an  educational  speaker  for  each  meeting  this  summer 
and  in  this  way  our  educational  workers  are  given  large  audi- 
ences of  earnest,  enthusiastic  farmers."  In  the  way  of  local 
organization,  over  eighty  counties  have  "School  Improvement 
Clubs"  of  women;  and,  besides  these,  the  "Women's  Clubs" 
are  doing  much  useful  work  in  behalf  of  better  schools.  "An 
annual  meeting  of  the  School  Improvement  Clubs  is  held  at 
Athens  during  the  session  of  the  University  Summer  School,  and 
in  this  way  hundreds  of  teachers  from  all  sections  of  Georgia 
are  enlisted."  A  Business  Men's  Conference,  the  sequel  to  a 
meeting  of  the  Georgia  delegation  at  Pinehurst,  was  held  last 
April  and  proved  an  occasion  of  remarkable  interest,  and  of 
great  promise  for  the  future  of  educational  progress  in  this 
State. 

In  Tennessee,  campaign  work  under  the  leadership  of  Messrs. 
Claxton  and  Mynders  has  been  extraordinarily  effective.  In 
1905  more  than  three  hundred  meetings  were  held,  and  in  1906 
every  county  in  the  State  was  visited,  and  the  attendance  at 
the  meetings  was  sometimes  as  high  as  6,000.  Of  those  held  in 
1906,  Professor  Claxton  writes: 

"The  average  attendance  was  about  1,000,  and  the  total  at- 
tendance something  more  than  100,000.  The  attendance  was 
larger  than  at  any  of  the  political  gatherings  in  the  State  during 
the  year.  At  these  rallies  addresses  were  made  by  Superintend- 
ent Mynders  and  myself,  and  by  a  hundred  or  more  prominent 
citizens — educators,  statesmen,  and  others  who  joined  us  at  differ- 
ent places.  President  Brown  Ayres,  of  the  University  of  Ten- 
nessee attended  about  twenty  of  the  meetings.  At  each  place 
addresses  were  made  in  the  morning  and  in  the  afternoon.  At 
the  close  of  the  afternoon  addresses  resolutions  were  read  cak- 
ing upon  the  next  General  Assembly  of  the  State  to  make  the  fo1- 
lowing  annual  appropriations  from  the  State  Treasury: 

"1.  For  common  schools,  75  cents  for  each  child  of  school  age 
in  the  State: 


EDUCATIONAL    PEOGRESS    IN    THE    SOUTH. 

"2.  Special  fund  of  $50,000  to  assist  the  poorer  counties  in 
bringing  their  schools  up  to  something  like  the  average  length 
of  term  in  the  State. 

"3.  To  encourage  and  assist  the  counties  in  establishing  and 
maintaining  high  schools,  $25,000 ; 

"4.  For  the  establishment  and  maintenance  of  three  normal 
schools,  one  in  each  grand  division  of  the  State,  $75,000 ; 

"5.  To  the  University  of  Tennessee,  $50,000; 

"6.  To  encourage  and  assist  rural  schools  in  establishing  and 
maintaining  public  libraries,  $5,000. 

"In  every  county  except  one  the  resolutions  were  unani- 
mously adopted,  and  in  that  county  there  was  but  one  negative 
vote.  After  this  part  of  the  campaign  was  closed,  resolutions 
were  sent  to  county  courts,  boards  of  trade,  boards  of  education, 
chapters  of  the  Junior  Order  of  United  American  Mechanics, 
and  other  labor  unions  and  patriotic  associations,  and  to  women 's 
clubs.  Everywhere  the  resolutions  were  adopted  by  these  repre- 
sentative bodies.  When  the  Legislature  met  in  January  these 
resolutions  were  submitted,  together  with  a  petition  to  the  same 
effect,  signed  by  one  hundred  thousand  citizens  of  the  State. 

"A  large  majority  of  the  members  of  the  Legislature  were 
heartily  in  favor  of  legislation  in  harmony  with  the  petitions. 

"Recently,  there  has  been  organized  the  Co-operative  Edu- 
cation Association  of  Tennesssee  which  will  undertake  to  do 
systematic  work  for  the  improvement  of  schoolhouses  and 
grounds,  the  establishment  of  libraries,  increase  of  school  taxes, 
and  to  make  sentiment  which  will  result  in  good  legislation. ' ' 

In  Alabama,  a  good  deal  of  valuable  help  to  an  improved 
educational  sentiment  is  rendered  by  political  leaders.  Last 
November,  Mr.  Gunnels,  who  is  now  the  State  Superintendent, 
wrote :  ' '  Almost  every  candidate  for  office  during  the  past  year 
was  boldly  outspoken  in  favor  of  public  education,  in  favor  of 
increased  appropriations,  a  high  standard  for  teachers,  better 
schoolhouses  and  a  better  school  system."  During  the  present 
season  Captain  Hobson  has  been  conducting  a  somewhat  unique 
and  striking  educational  campaign  throughout  his  Congressional 
district,  having  brought  from  the  U.  S.  Government  service  a 
number  of  experts  in  different  fields  of  practical  science  to 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH.         267 

assist  him  in  popular  education.  In  the  sphere  of  local  organ- 
ization, the  State  Federation  of  Women's  Clubs  has  been  active 
in  organizing  "School  Improvement  Associations"  both  in  the 
cities  and  in  rural  districts.  A  letter  from  the  State  Super- 
intendent, written  in  July,  says:  "We  have  now  about  twenty 
county  associations,  four  city  associations  and  over  fifty  local 
associations."  The  plan  is  to  "organize  a  County  School  Im- 
provement Association  in  each  county  and  through  this  medium 
to  organize  the  rural  communities." 

In  Mississippi,  the  direction  of  campaign  work  falls  almost 
entirely  to  the  State  Superintendent.  He  wrote  concerning  the 
work  of  last  year:  "I  spent  two-thirds  of  my  time  in  the  field, 
a  greater  part  of  which  was  in  the  rural  districts.  Several 
of  our  leading  teachers  gave  freely  of  their  time,  and  in  most 
instances  paid  their  own  expenses.  We  are  very  much  in  need 
of  local  leaders.  I  find  it  necessary  for  me  to  be  on  the  ground 
in  person,  and  to  stay  in  a  county  until  it  is  thoroughly  worked. 
During  the  fall  I  hold  meetings  with  the  county  superintendents 
by  Congressional  districts,  and  county  meetings  with  the  super- 
intendents, teachers,  trustees  and  citizens  generally.  I  visit 
neighborhoods,  usually  in  the  spring,  in  the  interest  of  high 
schools.  The  only  funds  available  for  this  work  are  those  gen- 
erously donated  by  the  Board  you  represent ;  the  greater  part 
of  which  is  used  in  publishing  the  School  Bulletin,  a  copy  of 
which  I  enclose.  I  have  published  and  distributed  two  issues  of 
this  publication  of  80,000  each,  during  the  present  year.  I  think 
I  can  reach  more  people  in  this  way  than  by  paying  the  expenses 
of  speakers.  It  is  intended  to  be  a  campaign  paper,  and  I  feel 
sure  that  it  has  had  a  most  potent  effect  in  educating  public 
sentiment  for  better  schools. ' ' 

In  Louisiana,  an  effective  campaign  is  carried  on  through 
the  regular  school  system.  In  November,  1906,  Dr.  Dillard 
writes :  "I  know  of  no  civic  organization  in  public  school  inter- 
ests except  the  Public  School  Alliance  of  New  Orleans. ' '  He  says 
further:  "The  only  general  meeting  held  during  the  present 
year  has  been  that  of  the  State  Teachers'  Association.  At  the 
close  of  this  meeting,  with  the  approval  and  aid  of  Superin- 
tendent Aswell,  I  called  a  meeting  of  the  high  school  principals 


268         EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

and  teachers,  which  had  an  attendance  of  seventy.  We  organ- 
ized by  electing  a  president  and  secretary,  voted  the  need  of  such 
an  organization,  and  passed  a  resolution  approving  of  a  special 
high  school  conference."  The  trend  of  thought  and  discussion 
in  Louisiana  has  been  in  the  direction  of  employing  superior 
men  for  all  important  educational  positions,  and  many  of  the 
men  thus  employed  have  proven  their  superiority  in  the  cam- 
paign work.  Men  from  the  Universities  have  united  with  those 
connected  with  the  public  schools  in  these  efforts,  and  the 
State  Superintendents  of  Mississippi  and  Arkansas  have  also 
given  valuable  assistance.  Superintendent  Aswell  in  a  recent  let- 
ter names  ten  of  these  and  says  of  them:  "These  gentlemen 
have  never  hesitated  to  go  when  called  upon,  whether  to  travel 
three  hundred  miles  by  train  or  to  drive  thirty  miles  across 
the  country,  to  encourage  the  people  to  build  better  school- 
houses,  increase  the  school  term,  and  pay  the  price,  whatsoever 
the  cost,  for  trained  teachers. ' ' 

II.  SCHOOLHOUSES. 

Professor  Charles  L.  Coon,  of  North  Carolina,  has  published 
a  table  of  figures  giving  the  estimated  value  of  rural  school- 
houses  in  the  South,  leaving  out  those  of  the  cities  and  towns. 
The  table  is  here  reproduced,  so  far  as  relates  to  these  eight 
States : 

.  RUBAL   SCHOOLHOUSES. 

Number.  Total  Value.  Ave.  Value. 

Virginia   8,965  $1,953,532  $218 

North  Carolina    7,813  1,335,532  170 

South  Carolina   4,726  850,000  177 

Georgia    7,433  2,150,135  289 

Tennessee    6,680  2,496,265  373 

Alabama     4,386  562,342  128 

Mississippi     7,052  920,000  130 

Louisiana  3,433  1,225,000  130 


Total 50,488       $11,492,806  $227 

With  these  figures  before  us  we  can  see  that  the  country  school- 
house  is  a  telling  object  lesson.  It  is  a  daily  reminder  of  things 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IX  THE  SOUTH.          269 

due  to  the  children  which  they  do  not  have,  and  when  the  educa- 
tional spirit  is  stirred  the  first  thought  will  probably  be  of  a 
better  building. 

The  State  Superintendent  of  North  Carolina  says  of  the  people 
of  his  State :  ' '  For  about  five  years  they  have  been  building 
new  and  modern  schoolhouses  in  accordance  with  plans  pre- 
pared by  the  best  architects,  approved  by  the  State  Superin- 
tendent of  Instruction,  at  the  average  rate  of  one  a  day  for 
every  day  in  the  year;  433  of  these  have  been  erected  during 
the  year  ending  June  30,  1907,  and  in  the  five  years  more  than 
1,500  have  been  erected.  The  value  of  the  rural  school  property 
has  been  nearly  doubled,  and  the  value  of  the  city  school  prop- 
erty more  than  trebled  since  1900." 

Keports  from  other  States  in  1906  were  to  a  similar  effect : 

In  Virginia  two  hundred  new  schoolhouses  were  built  dur- 
ing the  year,  at  a  cost  of  $450,000,  and  250  more  were  repaired 
and  150  furnished  at  an  additional  cost  of  $75,000. 

In  South  Carolina  200  were  built  from  plans  approved  by 
the  State  Department  of  Education,  and  inspected  by  the  County 
Superintendent. 

In  Georgia,  during  the  year  1905,  the  number  was  280. 

In  Tennessee,  within  four  years,  the  value  of  school  property 
increased  from  $4,179,123  to  $5,879,213. 

In  Alabama  there  were  built  within  the  year  346  rural  school- 
houses,  at  a  cost  of  from*$400  to  $2,000  apiece. 

In  Mississippi  some  470  rural  schoolhouses  were  built  of  the 
less  expensive  pattern,  and  fourteen  others  which  cost  from 
$5,000  to  $20.000. 

In  Louisiana  208  new  buildings  were  erected  at  a  cost  of 
about  $500,000,  and  $150,000  was  expended  in  furnishing  and 
in  repairing  old  houses.  This  makes  the  whole  number  of 
houses  built  in  one  year  in  the  seven  States,  not  including  Ten- 
nessee, 2,151. 

III.  RURAL  SCHOOL  LIBRARIES. 

People  living  in  the  country  are  not  usually  well  supplied 
with  books  or  periodical  literature  and  their  children  do  not  find 
a  great  deal  in  their  homes  that  they  are  much  interested  in 


270  EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS   IN    THE    SOUTH. 

reading.  A  well  selected  school  library  therefore  is  a  real  boon, 
not  only  to  teachers  and  pupils,  but  to  the  community.  Much 
has  been  done  in  several  States  to  provide  such  libraries. 

In  Virginia,  in  1906,  an  appropriation  of  $7,500  was  made  by 
the  Legislature  for  traveling  libraries. 

The  North  Carolina  Legislature  began  making  appropriations 
for  rural  school  libraries  in  1901.  For  the  first  year  or  two  con- 
siderable persuasion  had  to  be  used  by  the  State  and  County  Su- 
perintendents to  bring  the  people  up  to  the  conditions  required, 
but  this  has  changed  and  now  the  demand  is  beyond  the  supply. 
According  to  the  last  report,  there  are  now  1,659  of  these  libra- 
ries costing  $30  each  and  277  supplementary  libraries  costing  $15 
each;  the  number  of  volumes  is  143,000 and  the  total  cost $53,925. 
Besides  these,  upwards  of  100  libraries  have  been  established 
by  private  subscription  without  aid  from  the  State.  Al]  these 
are  for  rural  schools  and  do  not  include  outlays  in  the  cities. 

From  South  Carolina  the  Superintendent  reports  that  nearly 
1,000  libraries  have  been  established  in  rural  schools  within  the 
past  four  years;  these  contain  at  least  100,000  well  selected 
books  and  their  cost  has  been  about  $40,000.  There  has  also  been 
a  library  movement  in  the  cities  and  towns. 

Georgia  reports  1,107  libraries  containing  131,059  volumes 
valued  at  $80,471. 

In  Louisiana  257  libraries  were  established  in  1906  at  the  cost 
of  $6,482.  There  were  then  469  in  all,  with  90,453  volumes 
valued  at  $48,673.  During  the  past  six  months,  as  the  Superin- 
tendent writes  in  July,  $21,000  more  has  been  expended  for 
public  school  libraries. 

In  Mississippi  a  new  school  law  provides  that  when  a  school 
will  provide  a  locker  and  $10,  raised  by  subscription,  the  State 
will  add  $10  from  the  general  fund.  The  Superintendent,  in 
his  report  at  the  close  of  last  year  expressed  confidence  that  500 
libraries  would  be  established  during  this  year. 

Putting  these  statements  together,  we  may  fairly  estimate  that 
some  5,000  of  these  rural  libraries  have  been  established  during 
the  past  five  years,  and  that  they  contain  about  500,000  volumes, 
which  have  cost  $250,000. 


EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS    IN    THE    SOUTH.  271 

IV.  SCHOOL  CONSOLIDATION. 

A  time  of  building  is  one  of  opportunity.  The  present  necessity 
of  replacing  inferior  schoolhouses  makes  it  possible  to  lay  out 
large  plans,  to  select  good  locations  and  to  put  up  buildings  that 
will  be  likely  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  coming  people.  In 
the  eight  States  under  consideration  there  are  over  50,000  school- 
houses.  Most  of  these,  especially  the  poorer  ones,  are  in  the 
country.  They  suggest  how  much  might  be  done  through  local 
schools  for  the  multitudes  who  have  few  other  chances  of  gain- 
ing intelligence  for  their  children  or  for  themselves.  Hitherto 
these  schools  have  done  but  a  small  part  of  what  they  might 
do.  The  current  of  popular  thought  is  now  turning  toward  their 
proper  development.  The  conviction  is  growing  that  country 
schools  ought  to  be  as  good  in  their  way  as  the  schools  in  town. 
Country  boys  and  girls  ought  to  have  the  chance  in  their  own 
neighborhood  to  learn  those  things  which  are  needed  in  the  nat- 
ural pursuits  that  open  to  them,  in  their  homes  as  well  as  else- 
where, things  more  interesting  to  most  of  them  than  letters  and 
figures,  things  that  lead  at  once  to  attractive  exertion  and  high 
achievement.  So  the  sentiment  grows  that  there  should  be  in  every 
county  some  schools  of  a  high  order,  for  advanced  instruction, 
both  academic  and  industrial,  and  that  these  should  be  free  to 
all  who  may  be  prepared  to  avail  themselves  of  their  courses. 

There  seems  to  be  only  one  way  of  doing  anything  of  this 
sort,  and  that  is  to  unite  a  number  of  small  schools,  to  establish 
in  a  central  spot  one  that  is  equipped  for  the  purposes  intended, 
and  to  contrive  some  way  of  bringing  the  children  living  at  a  dis- 
tance by  public  conveyance.  This  is  now  being  undertaken 
very  extensively.  In  1900  a  letter  was  read  at  the  Capon  Springs 
Conference  from  a  county  superintendent  in  Georgia  which  told 
of  an  experiment  of  this  kind  in  Washington  county.  The  idea 
was  then  new.  It  has  now  become  prevalent. 

A  report  from  Virginia  last  December  told  that  about  200 
schools  had  been  consolidated  into  sixty  during  the  previous  year, 
and  a  letter  recently  received  from  the  same  author  says  upon 
the  general  subject:  "The  advantages  of  graded  schools  over 


272  EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS   IN    THE   SOUTH. 

single-room  schools  are  coming  to  be  shown  so  strikingly  in 
actual  experience  that  popular  opposition  to  consolidation  is 
disappearing.  A  reasonable  scheme  for  a  graded  school  through 
concentration  may  now  be  undertaken  in  almost  any  part  of 
the  State  without  apprehension  of  trouble  with  the  people. ' ' 

In  North  Carolina  five  examples  are  given  in  different  coun- 
ties. 

In  South  Carolina  the  State  Superintendent  reports  that  a 
number  of  such  cases  have  occurred. 

In  Tennessee  Superintendent  Mynders  reported  last  winter 
that  within  the  previous  four  years  the  number  of  schools  had 
been  reduced  630  by  consolidation,  while  the  number  of  teachers 
had  increased  200. 

Of  Mississippi,  the  State  Superintendent  says  that  there  are 
now  one  or  two  consolidated  schools  in  every  county  of  the  State, 
and  the  State  contains  some  seventy-five  counties.  In  Monroe 
county  there  are  four  such  schools  formed  out  of  twelve  small 
schools;  in  Copiah  county  there  are  seven  such  schools  and  in 
Lincoln  county  eight. 

The  report  from  Louisiana  tells  us  that  so  far  as  heard  from 
there  have  been  eighty-eight  consolidations;  and  a  recent  letter 
adds  this  information  about  conveyance  of  children  "from  a 
distance:  "The  number  of  school  districts  now  transporting  pu- 
pils to  central  schools  is  thirty-seven,  with  a  total  of  fifty  wag- 
onettes used  in  the  service.  Two  years  ago  there  were  none." 

To  this  list  may  be  added  an  illustration  from  another  State 
besides  those  named:  Duval  county,  Florida,  has  fifteen  schools 
formed  by  the  consolidation  of  forty-five. 

In  this  way  improved  schools  are  secured  with  no  greater  cost. 
The  public  conveyance  makes  attendance  almost  as  easy.  The 
larger  number  of  the  pupils  facilitates  grading  and  the  em- 
ployment of  more  teachers.  It  becomes  practicable  afterward 
to  add  manual  and  industrial  training,  or  instruction  in  other 
lines  according  to  the  local  demand;  and  so  the  foundation  is 
laid  for  whatever  future  development  the  interests  of  the  com- 
munity may  require. 


EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS   IN    THE    SOUTH.  273 

V.    RURAL   HIGH   SCHOOLS. 

With  the  impulse  to  consolidate  small  schools  there  has  been 
another  to  establish  high  schools.  The  South  has  many  colleges 
and  universities,  but  very  few  academies.  Little  attention  has 
been  paid  to  preparing  students  for  college,  and  the  higher  in- 
stitutions have  suffered.  Most  of  these  institutions  have  done 
the  best  they  could  to  remedy  the  trouble  by  having  preparatory 
departments,  but  this  has  been  only  a  makeshift.  They  have 
keenly  felt  the  embarrassment  and  recognized  the  necessity  of 
multiplying  secondary  schools.  To  this  call  of  the  colleges  and 
universities  there  is  now  popular  response,  and  the  movement 
is  under  way  for  maintaining  high  schools  as  a  feature  of  the 
public  school  system.  Laws  to  this  end  have  been  enacted  in 
Virginia,  in  both  Carolinas,  in  Tennessee,  Alabama,  Mississippi 
and  Louisiana,  while  in  Georgia  the  question  is  actively  agitated 
with  a  view  to  early  legislation. 

Of  the  significance  of  this  movement,  Superintendent  Joyner, 
of  North  Carolina,  writes:  "These  schools  will  go  far  towards 
supplying  the  missing  link  between  the  rural  piiblic  schools  and 
the  colleges.  By  placing  high  school  instruction  within  the 
reach  of  hundreds  and  thousands  of  country  boys  and  girls  to 
whom  it  was  practically  an  impossibility,  they  will  afford  these 
an  opportunity  to  get  at  home  preparation  for  college  and  a  bet- 
ter preparation  for  life  and  citizenship.  They  will  prove,  a]so, 
potent  factors  in  the  improvement  of  the  rank  and  file  of  the 
rural  school  teachers.  May  we  not  hope  that  within  a  few 
years  North  Carolina  will  have  a  complete  system  of  public  edu- 
cation from  the  primary  school  to  the  college  and  university?" 

The  General  Education  Board  has  given  substantial  aid  to 
this  movement  for  rural  high  schools  and  in  some  States  a  good 
deal  has  already  been  done. 

In  Virginia  there  are  now  170  such  schools  where  there  were 
only  nineteen  a  year  and  a  half  ago.  A  letter  from  Mr.  Rawley, 
in  July,  says:  "Several  instances  of  consolidation  and  of  new 
high  schools  have  been  reported  in  the  last  few  weeks  as  a  di- 
rect result  of  the  work  of  the  leagues." 


274         EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

Of  North  Carolina  Mr.  Joyner  writes:  "These  high  schools 
will  be  organized  this  fall.  Many  applications  for  them  are  al- 
ready on  file  in  ray  office.  It  is  already  evident  that  the  number 
will  be  limited  only  by  the  appropriation  and  the  law." 

From  South  Carolina  the  State  Superintendent  writes:  "We 
are  meeting  with  marked  success  in  establishing  high  schools. 
The  requirements  of  the  high  school  act  are  strict  and  difficult, 
but  they  are  being  met." 

Concerning  Tennessee,  Superintendent  Mynders  wrote  last 
winter:  "In  all  parts  of  the  State  interest  in  public  schools  is 
growing  rapidly.  The  law  authorizing  the  county  courts  to 
establish  and  maintain  public  high  schools  was  enacted  in  1899. 
Up  to  July,  1905,  seven  counties  had  levied  taxes  or  made  appro- 
priations for  them  out  of  the  county  funds  and  five  of  these 
had  established  one  school  each.  At  this  time  seventeen  coun- 
ties have  levied  taxes  or  made  appropriations  for  high  schools 
and  in  fifteen  of  these  counties  thirty-two  schools  have  been 
established.  The  annual  income  of  these  schools  from  taxes 
and  appropriations  is  approximately  $180,000  and  they  own 
property  valued  at  $175,000.  In  more  than  a  dozen  other  coun- 
ties committees  have  been  appointed  and  other  steps  taken  pre- 
liminary to  voting  on  the  question  of  establishing  high  schools 
and  levying  taxes  for  their  support." 

Of  Louisiana,  Superintendent  Aswell  writes  in  July:  "Four 
State  high  schools  have  been  created  during  the  past  six  months, 
making  the  total  number  fifty-three." 

VI.  INDUSTRIAL  EDUCATION. 

The  letter  already  referred  to,  from  Washington  county.  Geor- 
gia, which  was  read  at  Capon  Springs,  in  1900,  gave  an  account 
of  interesting  experiments  in  industrial  instruction  that  had  been 
tried  in  the  country  districts.  This  was  probably  the  first  sys- 
tematic effort  to  introduce  such  courses  into  the  schools  of  a 
whole  county  anywhere  in  the  South.  During  the  years  which 
have  followed  much  has  been  done  in  this  way.  Not  only  have 
the  teachers'  colleges  given  a  great  deal  of  attention  to  this  sub- 
ject, but  it  has  also  been  a  marked  feature  in  many  of  the  summer 
schools.  The  courses  of  Professor  Hammel  have  awakened  re- 


EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS    IN    THE    SOUTH.  275 

markable  interest,  and  other  instructors  have  had  similar  suc- 
cess. Thus  a  great  number  of  the  more  ambitious  and  progres- 
sive teachers  have  gained  a  new  and  vital  conception  of  the  pur- 
pose of  education.  This  has  influenced  their  manner  of  teaching 
and  affected  the  schools  under  their  care.  Exercises  in  manual 
training  and  handicraft  are  quietly  making  their  way  in  many 
places,  and  sometimes  where  one  would  least  expect.  The  old 
methods  arex  varied  and  enlivened  with  those  more  attractive, 
while  the  pupils  are  led  to  observe  what  is  going  on  about  them 
and  to  find  delight  in  the  world  of  natural  phenomena. 

The  Miller  School  of  Virginia  has  stood  as  a  most  impressive 
object  lesson  in  this  kind  of  education,  and  the  late  Captain 
Vawter,  for  many  years  its  honored  head,  was  an  earnest  apostle 
of  industrial  training  as  an  essential  to  the  best  system  of  public 
schools.  In  complete  accord  with  this  has  been  the  influence 
spread  abroad  in  each  State  by  the  Agricultural  and  Mechanical 
Colleges ;  these  have  taught  the  dignity  of  the  trades  and  of  the 
practical  sciences  as  affording  an  intellectual  discipline  quite  as 
effective  in  its  way  as  that  of  literature  and  metaphysics.  Nor 
can  we  leave  out  of  view  the  powerful  influence  of  General 
Armstrong  and  of  the  great  school  at  Hampton,  which  has  stead- 
ily held  to  the  philosophy  of  "learning  by  doing."  Of  similar 
influence,  too,  has  been  the  work  of  Dr.  Knapp  in  teaching  the 
farmers  of  Texas  and  Louisiana  the  latent  possibilities  of  wealth 
and  power  in  an  intelligent  cultivation  of  the  soil. 

Last  year's  report  from  Virginia  says:  "Text  books  on  agri- 
culture have  been  introduced  into  both  primary  and  high 
schools." 

From  South  Carolina  comes  this  word :  ' '  Dr.  S.  A.  Knapp  ad- 
dressed our  teachers.  He  gave  many  of  them  a  new  view-point 
of  their  work.  His  coming  means  much  to  our  rural  schools  and 
communities.  He  also  helped  other  schools." 

The  State  Superintendent  of  Mississippi  writes :  ' '  Agriculture 
for  the  first  time  was  last  year  made  a  part  of  the  common 
school  curriculum.  The  work  has  been  taken  up  with  an  un- 
expected interest.  It  is  no  uncommon  thing  to  see  well  tended 
school  gardens  in  the  remotest  districts.  The  introduction  of 
this  study  into  the  curriculum  has  had  a  most  noticeable  effect  in 


276  EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS   IN    THE   SOUTH. 

giving  the  people  a  broader  conception  of  the  meaning  of  educa- 
tion. I  find  that  the  text-books  used  by  the  children  are  read 
by  the  parents.  The  A.  and  M.  College,  through  its  Farmers ' 
Institutes,  bulletins  and  in  other  ways,  is  rendering  efficient 
service  in  awakening  interest  in  the  study  of  agriculture.  Vocal 
music,  free-hand  drawing  and  manual  training  are  being  taught 
in  the  more  progressive  counties.  At  a  fair,  just  closed  in 
Jackson,  two  counties  had  creditable  exhibitions  of  work  of 
this  character  done  in  the  rural  schools  " 

A  report  from  Louisiana  is  similar  in  its  tenor :  ' '  Agriculture 
has  been  introduced  into  many  of  the  rural  schools,  and  manual 
training  put  into  three  of  the  high  schools  of  the  State.  I  visited 
recently  the  manual  training  department  of  the  Shreveport  High 
School,  and  found  it  in  a  most  excellent  condition.  Special 
effort  is  being  made  to  promote  school  gardens,  and  a  number 
of  schools  are  beginning  this  work. ' ' 

VII.     IMPROVEMENT  OF   THE  TEACHING  FORCE.* 

Teachers  have  had  more  to  do  with  this  new  educational  in- 
terest than  any  others.  They  have  been  the  first  to  receive  pro- 
gressive ideas ;  they  form  the  largest  element  in  educational  meet- 
ings; they  are  the  soul  of  the  organizations  and  they  have  been 
in  the  front  of  every  campaign  for  school  improvement.  So, 
too,  the  future  of  the  schools  depends  on  the  teacher  and  what- 
ever contributes  to  the  improvement  of  the  teaching  force  con- 
tributes to  the  improvement  of  the  whole  educational  system. 

Encouraging  progress  in  the  direction  of  a  stronger  teaching 
force  has  been  made : 

(1)  In  recent  legislation  placing  the  examinations  of  teachers 
under  the  control  of  the  State  Superintendent.  The  effect  of 
such  law  is  to  raise  the  standard  of  requirements  and  to  enforce 
this  standard  uniformly  throughout  the  State.  Laws  embodying 
this  principle  have  been  enacted  in  Mississippi,  Alabama,  Vir- 
ginia, West  Virginia,  Florida,  Louisiana,  South  Carolina.  Texas 
and  North  Carolina.  Superintendent  Hill,  reporting  the  effect 

*Prepared  chiefly  by  Mr.  Rose. 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH.         277 

of  this  law  in  Alabama,  says:  "There  has  never  been  put  on 
the  statute  book  a  law  which  has  done  more  to  raise  the  standard 
of  the  teaching  force  of  the  State." 

(2)  Progress  in  the  training  of  teachers  has  been  made  in 
the  more  definite  organization  and  in  the  larger  State  and  local 
support  of  the  Teachers'  Institute.    In  1905  Louisiana  expended 
for  Teachers'  Institutes  and  Summer  Schools  $21,395.    The  work 
for  the  State  includes  a  monthly  institute  for  one  day  in  each 
parish,  an  annual  institute  of  one  week  in  each  parish,  and  three 
grades  of  Summer  Schools,  one  for  teachers  just  entering  the 
service,  one  for  third  and  second  grade  teachers,  and  one  for 
first  grade  teachers,  normal  school  and  college  graduates.     The 
work  has  been  definitely  organized;  it  has  a  graded  course  of 
instruction,  and  is  administered  by  a  corps  of  teachers  specially 
trained  for  the  service. 

In  the  laws  of  all  the  other  States  the  institute  is  recognized 
as  an  essential  part  of  the  State  school  system  and  some  pro- 
vision is  made  for  its  support  by  fees,  local  funds,  State  funds, 
or  by  a  combination  of  these.  In  all  these  States  its  development 
in  support  and  in  organization  is  in  the  direction  of  the  stand- 
ard set  by  Louisiana. 

(3)  Further  progress  in  the  training  of  teachers  is  being  made 
in  the  development  of  the  public  high  school.     Superintendent 
Whittield  estimates  that  .seventy-five  per  cent,  of  the  teachers  in 
the  elementary  rural  schools  of  Mississippi  received  the  whole  of 
their  education  in  the  schools  in  which  they  are  teaching.  This  is 
a  fair  estimate  of  recent  conditions  in  all  the  Southern  States. 
Every  public  high  school  established  is  an  institution  for  the 
education   of  teachers;   and  when  the   States  have  established 
adequate  systems  of  high  schools,  it  will  be  possible  to  require 
of  the  teacher  in  the  elementary  school  at  least  the  equivalent 
of  a  high -school  education.    Nothing  else  now  being  done  in  the 
South  means  so  much  for  the  improvement  of  its  teaching  force 
as  this  rapid  multiplication  of  public  high  schools. 

(4)  A  sign  of  improvement  in  the  teaching  force  is  the  growth 
of  the  normal  schools.    For  the  past  five  years  most  of  the  State 
Normal  Schools  have  been  adding  steadily  to  their  buildings,  im- 
proving their  equipment,   increasing  and  strengthening  their 


278         EDUCATIONAL  PROGKESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

faculties,  raising  the  standard  of  their  work,  and  graduating 
larger  and  larger  numbers  of  students.  President  Jarman  says 
of  Farraville:  "Five  years  ago  our  annuity  was  only  $15,000 
and  the  State  has  appropriated  only  $60,000  for  buildings  and 
equipment  in  seventeen  years.  Our  annuity  now  is  $40,000  and 
during  the  last  five  years  $125,000  has  been  appropriated  for 
buildings  and  equipment.  Our  faculty  has  increased  from  thir- 
teen to  thirty,  and  the  enrollment  from  422  to  873.  The  course 
of  study  has  been  lengthened  by  three  years  and  now  ranks  with 
the  courses  offered  by  the  best  normal  schools  of  the  country." 
Some  of  the  larger  schools  like  Rock  Hill  and  Greensboro  are 
receiving  from  the  State  an  annuity  of  from  $60,000  to  $75,000. 

(5)  All  the  State  Universities  in  these  States  have  established 
departments  of  education  for  the  training  of  teachers  for  the 
secondary  schools  and  the  higher  positions  in  the  service.    These 
departments  are  young  and  are,  therefore,  small,  but  the  begin- 
ning has  been  made  and  with  it  a  distinct  advance  in  the  train- 
ing of  teachers. 

(6)  The  departments  of  education  and  the  normal  schools  are 
extending  their  work  in  summer  schools.     The  Peabody  College 
at  Nashville  has  a  summer  term  in  which  it  offers  the  regular 
college  work.     Summer  schools  for  teachers  are  now  maintained 
at  the  Universities  of  Texas,  Alabama,  Georgia,  Florida,  Ten- 
nessee, West  Virginia,  and  Virginia.     The  Summer  School  of 
the  South,  at  Knoxville,  enrolls  annually  about  1,700  students 
from  all  the  Southern  States.     In  these  schools  more  than  5,000 
teachers,  who  could  not  attend  any  institution  during  the  regu- 
lar year,  are  receiving  professional  training. 

(7)  This  advance  in  the  training  of  teachers  is  being  rein- 
forced by  an  advance  in  the  teachers'  salaries.     Speaking  of 
North  Carolina,  Mr.  Coon  says:     "The  total  amount  paid  each 
rural  white  teacher  in  1905-6  was  $4.86  more  than  in  the  pre- 
vious year,  and  the  amount  paid  to  city  teachers  was  $10.34 
more."     Of   Tennessee,  Mr.   Mynders  says:     "The  salaries  of 
teachers  show  an  increase  as  compared  with  last  year  of  more 
than  $4.00  per  month."     Mr.   Whitfield   says   of  Mississippi: 
"The  Legislature  of  1904  raised  the  maximum  salary  of  a  first 
grade  rural  teacher  from  $55.00  to  $65.00  per  month;  the  last 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH.         279 

Legislature  raised  this  to  $75.00  for  all  counties,  and  further 
provided  that  when  a  county  carried  a  balance  forward  to  the 
next  scholastic  year,  the  County  Superintendent  could  pay  prin- 
cipals of  schools  employing  assistants  $100.00  a  month,  and  the 
assistants  $65.00. ' '  Mr.  Aswell  writes  of  Louisiana :  ' '  The  num- 
ber of  teachers  employed  who  have  been  especially  trained  in 
normal  schools  has  increased  101.  White  teachers'  salaries,  in- 
cluding all  grades,  have  increased  at  the  rate  of  $7.99  a  month 
during  each  of  the  past  three  years.  Thus,  the  average  teacher 
is  to-day  receiving  a  salary  of  $23.97  a  month  more  than  was  paid 
three  years  ago.  The  average  salary  below  the  high  school  in  1904 
was  $36.99 ;  in  1905  it  was  $42.98 ;  in  1906  it  has  reached  $49.11, 
and  the  increase  has  continued  in  the  same  .ratio  since  the  first  of 
January,  1907.  The  salaries  below  the  high  school  are  shown  to 
be  increasing  at  the  rate  of  $6.06  a  month  for  each  year.  The 
average  salary  of  high  school  principals  is  now  $1,133.33  per 
year. ' ' 

VIII.  PUBLIC  SCHOOL  SUPERVISION. 

The  vital  point  in  an  organized  system  is  the  administration. 
Thus  we  find  the  reports  from  the  South  constantly  dwelling 
upon  the  subject  of  school  supervision.  In  one  such  report  occur 
these  words:  "We  come  now  to  the  crucial  point— the  superin- 
tendent is  the  life  of  the  system.  When  the  superintendent  is  good, 
everything  will  be  good.  In  the  matter  of  supervision  condi- 
tions are  about  the  same  as  set  forth  in  previous  reports.  It 
would  be  difficult  to  find  in  all  the  State  a  half-dozen  well  quali- 
fied superintendents.  To  their  credit,  though,  it  must  be  said 
that  nearly  all  show  a  livelier  interest  in  the  schools;  and  nearly 
all  would'  do  better  work  if  they  knew  how.  The  most  encourag- 
ing thing  I  know  is  that  our  worthy  State  Superintendent  is 
taking  in  .the  situation  and  has  set  his  heart  on  better  things. 
'At  the  next  appointing  of  superintendents,'  says  he,  'they  must 
be  appointed  to  give  all  their  time  to  the  work,  and  with  ade- 
quate compensation.'  ! 

In  another  State  we  have  from  the  State  Superintendent  the 
following :  "At  present  many  superintendents  in  the  State  are 
paid  as  low  as  $150.00  per  year,  and  some  even  less.  This  will 


280  EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS    IN    THE    SOUTH. 

barely  defray  expenses  of  the  office,  and  as  a  result  they  are 
•compelled  to  devote  almost  all  their  time  to  some  other  employ- 
ment. Without  competent  supervision  and  direction  no  enter- 
prise can  succeed.  The  business  of  education  is  no  exception. 
The  County  Superintendent  should  be  trained  to  his  work  and 
should  be  capable  of  executing  plans  for  the  improvement  of 
the  school  in  his  county  and  the  better  training  of  his  teachers. 
He  should  be  able  to  carry  on  among  the  teachers  a  campaign 
to  stimulate  interest  in  the  schools  and  to  create  a  sentiment  in 
their  favor.  This,  in  my  opinion,  is  to-day  the  strategic  point  in 
the  educational  system  of  the  State,  and  we  should  at  least  fix 
a  minimum  salary  for  this  office.  A  competent  superintendent 
could  save  the  county  the  full  amount  of  his  salary  by  care- 
fully watching  the  finances  of  the  schools." 

During  the  last  few  years  much  has  been  done  to  diffuse  abroad 
a  higher  conception  of  the  meaning  of  this  office.  It  was  espe- 
cially desirable  that  the  superintendents  themselves  should  rise 
to  a  keener  sense  of  their  opportunities  and  responsibilities.  Of 
no  little  value  for  this  purpose  was  a  number  of  conventions 
of  superintendents,  which  were  held  at  the  suggestion  of  Dr. 
Buttrick,  and  with  the  material  aid  of  the  General  Education 
Board,  in  1902-3.  These  conventions  gathered  the  School  Sup- 
erintendents of  a  particular  State  at  a  central  point  for  con- 
ference on  practical  educational  questions.  Eight  were  held  in 
as  many  different  States.  They  were  well  attended  and  had  great 
influence.  In  several  States  a  permanent  organization  of  the 
County  Superintendents  was  effected  and  meetings  have  since 
been  annually  held. 

The  State  Superintendent  of  North  Carolina  says:  "Five 
years  ago  not  a  single  county  in  the  State  employed  a  County 
Superintendent  for  his  entire  time.  During  the  past  year  fifty- 
one  counties  employed  them  for  a  large  part  of  their  time.  In 
every  county  the  superintendent  is  devoting  more  time  than 
ever  before  to  his  work  and  is  visiting  his  schools.  The  average 
salary  has  been  more  than  doubled  in  four  years  and  is  now 
$590.  In  some  of  the  best  counties  the  salaries  range  from  $1,000 
to  $1,800.  The  law  now  requires  all  County  Superintendents  to 
visit  the  schools  and  to  attend  the  annual  conferences,  at  which 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH.  281 

the  State  Superintendent  and  his  fellow  County  Superintendents 
take  counsel  together  about  their  common  work.  The  office- 
has  grown  in  dignity,  respect,  importance  and  in  public  confi- 
dence. ' ' 

The  State  Superintendent  of  Mississippi  writes  in  a  similar 
vein:  "The  Legislature  of  1906  adopted  a  new  code  of  laws 
for  the  State.  In  the  school  laws  only  such  changes  and  addi- 
tions were  made  as  experience  had  shown  to  be  needed.  The 
maximum  salary  of  a  County  Superintendent  was  raised  from 
$1,000 'to  $1,800.  Up  to  1904,  the  maximum  had  been  $800.  I 
have  reports  from  three  counties  which  show  the  following  sal- 
aries: Yazoo,  $1,800;  Perry,  $1,600;  Tate,  $1,500.  The  law 
provides  that  when  the  salary  of  a  County  Superintendent  is 
$1,200  or  more,  that  official  shall  not  pursue  any  other  business 
of  a  public  nature,  but  shall  devote  his  entire  time  to  the  super- 
vision of  the  schools.  The  law  also  provides  that  in  addition  to- 
standing  examination  on  the  public  school  branches,  all  can- 
didates for  this  office  shall  pass  an  examination  on  the  art  of 
teaching.  I  am  sure  that  the  largely  increased  salary  and  the- 
higher  qualifications  required  will  result  in  giving  to  the  counties 
the  one  thing  most  needed  at  this  time  in  Mississippi— intelli- 
gent and  earnest  leadership." 

Quite  as  significant  is  the  report  of  Dr.  Dillard  concerning 
Louisiana:  "In  no  department  of  the  school  work  has  there 
been  such  marked  improvement  as  in  the  department  of  super- 
vision. Within  the  past  two  years  two-thirds  of  the  superin- 
tendents have  resigned  and  their  places  have  been  filled  by  prac- 
tical, up-to-date,  professional  school  men.  It  may  fairly  be 
claimed  that  the  needy,  the  helpless,  and  the  man  with  a  political 
'pull.'  have  withdrawn  from  the  office  of  Parish  Superintendent 
in  Louisiana."  A  statement  to  the  same  effect  comes  from 
Superintendent  Aswell,  dated  July  23,  1907:  "By  constantly 
pressing  the  subject  of  better  schools  there  has  been  a  wonderful 
sentiment  aroused  in  favor  of  school  supervision.  Probably  the 
greatest  single  achievement  in  Louisiana  has  been  accomplished 
by  the  parish  school  boards  in  putting  trained  teachers  in  charge 
of  the  schools  as  Parish  Superintendents.  These  superintendents 
know  their  business,  are  alive  to  the  situation,  and  respond 


282 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 


readily  to  all  influences  for  helpfulness  in  the  school  work  of 
the  State." 

IX.    COMPULSORY   ATTENDANCE  LAWS. 

With  the  growing  sentiment  in  behalf  of  efficient  supervision, 
there  is  coming  another  to  secure  the  better  attendance  of  the 
children.  At  the  Eighth  Conference,  held  at  Columbia,  S.  C., 
Professor  Hand  read  a  paper  vigorously  advocating  legislation 
for  the  accomplishment  of  this  object,  and  in  the  following 
year,  at  Lexington,  Professor  Barbe  presented  another  paper, 
telling  of  the  experiences  in  West  Virginia,  and  defending  the 
same  views.  This  is  fast  becoming  a  question  of  popular  interest 
and  is  beginning  to  occupy  the  serious  attention  of  legislators. 

In  North  Carolina,  as  Superintendent  Joyner  writes,  "the 
General  Assembly,  in  1907,  passed  a  compulsory  attendance  act, 
a  sort  of  local  option  law, ' '  and  then  he  adds :  "I  contemplate 
securing  the  adoption  of  compulsory  attendance  under  it  in  a 
number  of  districts  in  which  the  conditions  are  favorable,  there- 
by furnishing  an  object  lesson  and  getting  a  mass  of  facts  with 
which  to  prepare  public  sentiment  for  the  adoption  of  a  general 
•compulsory  law.  I  have  no  doubt  of  the  accomplishment  of 
this  within  the  next  two  years." 

Dr.  Frazer  writes  from  Virginia:  "A  better  understanding 
of  the  evils  of  scant  and  irregular  attendance  is  fast  making 
friends  for  compulsory  attendance.  It  is  as  common  now  to 
hear  men  argue  for  it  as  it  was  a  while  ago  to  hear  the  rights 
•of  parents  defended.  Some  provision  for  its  introduction  is 
.confidently  expected  of  the  next  Legislature."  Of  like  import 
are  words  of  Mr.  Rawley:  "Indications  gathered  from  com- 
ments of  the  press,  and  otherwise,  seem  to  show  a  growing  desire 
to  discuss  compulsory  education,  and  it  is  urged  that  we  inaug- 
urate a  campaign  in  this  behalf  at  our  next  annual  meeting." 

On  the  same  subject,  one  of  the  leading  statesmen  of  Alabama 
recently  said :  "A  compulsory  law  should  be  enacted  for  the 
sake  of  the  white  children.  There  is  no  need  of  it  for  the  negroes ; 
they  go  to  school  whenever  they  have  a  chance." 

The  difficulty  of  enforcing  such  a  law,  especially  in  sparsely 
settled  regions,  is  generally  recognized,  but  the  opinion  is  spread- 


283 

ing  that  it  would  be  of  great  value  in  many  communities.  As 
the  school  system  advances  in  administrative  efficiency,  the  time 
will  undoubtedly  come  for  the  enactment  of  such  laws. 

X.   LITERATURE   OF   EDUCATION. 

Education  finds  a  swift  handmaid  in  the  popular  press.  The 
intellectual  life  of  the  world  is  always  turning  to  the  child  for 
the  fulfilment  of  its  largest  hopes,  and  the  messenger  of  its 
latest  thought  is  the  printed  page.  The  writer  is  the  universal 
teacher  and  the  reader  is  the  recipient  of  his  inspirations.  This 
movement  for  better  schools  in  the  South  has  had  its  own  litera- 
ture, a  liquid  spring  rising  out  of  its  own  heart  and  flowing  into 
all  the  land  with  ever  fresh  suggestions. 

1.  Foremost  have  been  the  newspapers.  These  have  become 
the  first  medium  of  communication  between  the  educational 
meeting  and  the  general  public.  However  full  the  attendance 
at  convention  or  conference,  a  vastly  more  numerous  audience- 
absent,  unseen,  silent — have  listened  to  its  voices  and  shared 
in  its  results.  The  newspaper,  too,  has  been  the  ready  channel 
of  educational  intelligence  from  all  sources,  the  open  forum  of 
the  college  president,  of  the  members  of  the  board  of  education 
and  the  superintendent,  of  teachers  and  parents  and  children, 
of  every  one  and  any  one  who  has  a  wish  to  express  or  a  sug- 
gestion to  offer  in  behalf  of  better  advantages  for  the  young. 

In  these  eight  States  there  are  about  180  daily  papers,  with 
an  aggregate  circulation  of  over  800,000;  and  of  the  periodicals 
which  appear  less  often,  thirty-five  of  the  more  prominent  have 
a  circulation  of  about  640,000.  Such  an  agency  as  this,  enlisted 
in  any  cause,  has  a  power  whose  scope  it  is  not  easy  to  compre- 
hend. The  avowed  purpose  of  most  papers  is  educational  and 
they  are  naturally  sympathetic  toward  all  measures  promotive 
of  the  higher  interests  of  the  people.  Hence  the  great  part  which 
they  have  played. 

Of  somewhat  similar  value  are  the  bulletins,  pamphlets  and 
circulars  which  have  beeu  prepared  for  a  particular  purpose 
and  widely  scattered  among  the  people.  These  have  supple- 
mented the  articles  of  the  periodic  press,  making  the  ephemeral 


28-i        EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

impression  permanent,  and  carrying  the  message  to  many  who 
would  not  have  read  it  in  the  papers.  Of  great  value  among  pub- 
lications of  this  order  may  be  named:  "Universal  Education," 
by  the  Co-operative  Education  Association  of  Virginia;  "Im- 
provement of  Rural  Schoolhouses  and  Grounds,"  by  R.  D.  W. 
Connor,  of  North  Carolina;  "High  School  Act,"  by  the  State 
Superintendent  of  South  Carolina ;  ' '  Plans  and  Specifications  for 
Schoolhouses, ' '  by  the  State  Commissioner  of  Georgia ;  and  ' '  The 
Task  of  the  Leader, ' '  by  Mr.  Murphy,  of  Alabama. 

Reports  from  the  several  States  show  the  estimate  placed  upon 
this  work.  Dr.  Frazer,  of  Virginia,  says:  "There  are  fourteen 
papers  in  various  sections  of  the  State  publishing  either  a  page 
or  a  column  of  educational  matter  each  week;  and  one  hundred 
and  seventy-two  papers  publish  such  articles  as  are  sent  to 
them  by  our  press  committee.  Between  25,000  and  30,000  pages 
of  educational  leaflets  and  literature  have  been  printed  and 
distributed  from  the  office  of  the  secretary  in  Richmond.  The 
proceedings  of  the  Lynchburg  meeting  have  also  been  printed 
and  distributed." 

Commissioner  Merritt,  of  Georgia,  says:  "The  following 
pamphlets  have  been  sent  over  the  State:  'A  Plea  for  the  Edu- 
cation of  Georgia,'  'A  Vote  for  Progress,'  'An  Address  to  the 
People  of  Georgia,'  'The  Paramount  Question,'  'Discussions  of 
our  School  Problems  by  Educational  Statesmen,'  'Plans  and 
Specifications  for  Schoolhouses,'  'Report  of  School  Work  and 
School  Conditions,'  'What  is  Said  by  Those  Who  Know,'  'Our 
Boys  and  Girls  Our  Richest  Treasure.'  Stereotype  plates  of 
'An  Address  to  the  People  of  Georgia,'  and  of  addresses  on 
'Local  Taxation'  and  'Better  Rural  Schools  for  Georgia'  have 
been  furnished  for  publication  to  the  various  newspapers 
throughout  the  State.  The  press  has  shown  eagerness  for  this 
matter  and  we  have  accomplished  much  thereby." 

Superintendent  Martin,  of  South  Carolina,  speaking  of  the 
School  Improvement  Association,  remarks:  "The  addresses  of 
the  members  are  kept  for  a  mailing  list  and  the  president  has 
prepared  and  sent  to  them  some  very  helpful  and  suggestive 
bulletins  which  have  led  to  the  improving  and  beautifying  of 
many  Schoolhouses  with  their  surroundings." 


EDUCATIONAL   PROGEESS    IN    TILE    SOUTH.  285 

Superintendent  Gunnels,  of  Alabama,  closes  his  report  with 
the  words:  "I  am  enclosing  to  you  three  small  pamphlets  which 
explain  themselves.  These  pamphlets  have  been  distributed 
generally  and  generously  over  the  State,  and  I  trust  they  will 
bear  much  fruit. ' ' 

Many  particular  examples  might  be  cited  of  the  effective 
assistance  rendered  by  some  of  the  leading  newspapers.  Dur- 
ing the  past  year  the  Nashville  American  has  published  Super- 
intendent Mynders'  statistical  report  of  four  years'  progress 
in  the  Tennessee  schools;  the  State,  of  Columbia,  has  printed  an 
elaborately  illustrated  commencement  number,  descriptive  of 
all  the  South  Carolina  Colleges;  and  the  Raleigh  News  and  Ob- 
server has  sent  out  an  educational  number,  containing  forty- 
eight  pages  full  of  valuable  information  from  men  of  mark 
among  the  institutions  of  North  Carolina,  and  especially  inter- 
esting for  a  review  of  five  years  by  the  State  Superintendent. 
Similar  things  have  been  done  from  time  to  time  by  other 
journals. 

It  was  in  the  design  of  the  early  conferences  at  Capon  Springs 
to  have  the  influential  press  of  the  several  States  participate 
by  their  chosen  representatives,  and  in  the  subsequent  meetings 
much  pains  has  been  taken  to  enlist  their  interest  and  co-opera- 
tion. On  the  formation  of  the  Southern  Education  Board,  one 
of  the  first  steps  was  the  establishment  of  the  Bureau  of  Infor- 
mation at  Knoxville,  to  work  with  the  newspapers  and  through 
them  in  carrying  on  "a  crusade  against  ignorance."  The  de- 
velopment of  this  phase  of  the  work  from  year  to  year  has 
been  as  remarkable  as  any  part  of  it. 

2.  A  literature  more  substantial  and  lasting  has  also  made 
its  appearance.  The  peculiar  situation  in  the  South  has  raised 
many  educational  questions  of  world  wide  significance.  Espe- 
cially has  this  been  the  case  as  concerns  the  education  of  the 
negroes.  Here  are  problems  that  reach  beyond  America  to 
Africa,  Asia  and  the  Philippines.  The  ablest  minds  of  the 
country  are  attracted  to  these  problems  and  are  bestowing  upon 
them  their  earnest  thought.  Men  of  this  character  have  been 
asked  to  address  the  great  educational  assemblies  of  the  South 
and  have  prepared  for  these  occasions,  by  careful  research  and 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

diligent  study.  Then  have  followed  the  published  "Proceed- 
ings, ' '  thorough  revision  of  the  more  notable  addresses  for  maga- 
zine articles,  and  finally  the  embodiment  of  their  clearest  con- 
clusions in  books.  Certain  widely  read  volumes,  like  "The  Re- 
building of  Old  Commonwealths"  and  "The  Present  South," 
will  at  once  occur  to  many,  but  if  we  were  to  gather  all  the 
volumes  which  have  come  into  existence  on  the  waves  of  this 
movement  there  would  stand  before  us  more  than  we  think. ' ' 

3.  Perhaps  it  may  be  questioned  whether  statistical  reports 
are  to  be  regarded  as  literature,  but  these  certainly  have  great 
significance  in  the  field  of  practical  education.  The  regular 
reports  of  the  Department  of  Education  to  the  Legislature  in 
the  several  States  are  the  index  of  educational  conditions.  A 
full  and  thorough  report  is  possible  only  with  a  well  organized 
school  system.  The  State  Superintendent  cannot  prepare  credit- 
able tables  of  figures  for  the  counties  unless  the  county  officials 
send  accurate  statistics  to  him,  and  the  County  Superintendent 
will  be  equally  helpless  unless  the  teachers  in  each  school  are 
faithful  in  their  reports.  Those  who  depend  upon  published 
statistics  often  find  them  misleading  for  this  cause.  Figures  sent 
out  by  the  United  States  Government  might  naturally  be  re- 
garded as  trustworthy,  but  the  Government  is  at  the  mercy  of  local 
officials,  and  its  statements  may  be  faulty  because  certain  coun- 
ties have  not  been  heard  from,  or  particular  schools  have  given 
no  account  of  what  they  are  doing. 

In  most  of  the  Southern  States  the  general  educational  ad- 
vance has  been  reflected  in  greatly  improved  statistics.  In  a 
number  of  them  the  annual  reports  of  the  Department  of  Edu- 
cation, with  their  carefully  tabulated  figures  for  the  many  hun- 
dred schools,  are  an  honor  to  the  State  and  to  all  who  have  con- 
tributed to  their  perfection.  In  other  States  where  conditions 
are  still  backward,  and  the  county  boards  are  negligent,  earnest 
efforts  are  under  way  to  remedy  the  trouble.  There  is  a  move- 
ment in  one  of  the  more  progressive  States  to  have  a  law  passed 
requiring  the  County  Superintendent  to  present  a  full  and  sat- 
isfactory report  of  all  the  schools  in  his  charge,  and  forbidding 
the  payment  of  his  salary  till  the  report  has  been  rendered.  In 
another  State,  measures  are  being  taken  to  provide  an  extra 


EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS    IN    THE    SOUTH. 

clerk  whose  time  shall  be  given  to  this  particular  business.  With 
the  improvement  in  organization,  which  is  so  evident  in  all 
the  States,  there  must  be  increasing  completeness  in  these  publica- 
tions. 

XI.  THE  EDUCATIONAL  CENTER. 

Thomas  Jefferson  gave  to  the  Republic  the  conception  of  a 
university  organically  joined  to  a  system  of  free  schools  for  all 
the  people,  and  he  undertook  to  embody  this  thought  in  the 
University  of  Virginia.  That  conception  brought  into  the  new 
day  and  given  a  modern  interpretation  has  had  no  little  power 
in  kindling  and  guiding  the  educational  spirit  of  the  Southern 
people. 

While  it  may  be  simpler  to  look  upon  a  college  as  chiefly  for 
the  individuals  who  gather  there  to  pursue  their  chosen  courses 
of  study,  a  larger  view  is  quite  as  essential.  The  ' '  Seat  of  Learn- 
ing," with  its  spirit  of  research  and  love  of  truth,  belongs  to 
all  who  are  concerned  with  accurate  thinking  and  widening 
knowledge.  As  the  home  of  a  brotherhood  of  scholars  who  thus 
keep  in  touch  with  one  another  and  work  together  for  high 
ends— as  a  sacred  spot  having  associations  with  great  men  and 
great  deeds  of  other  times,  conserving  the  best  traditions  of  the 
past,  resisting  the  worst  clamors  of  the  present,  and  guarding 
reverently  the  worthiest  standards  of  conduct  for  the  young  who 
are  to  do  their  work  in  the  future,  the  college  well  deserves  all 
the  honor  and  love  which  it  is  our  American  custom  to  render. 

The  number  of  colleges  in  the  States  under  review,  as  reported 
by  the  United  States  Commissioner  of  Education,  omitting  those 
especially  for  negroes,  is  as  follows: 

UNIVERSITIES    AND    COLLEGES    FOB    WHITE    STUDENTS. 

Va.  N.  C.  S.  C.  Ga.  Tcnn.  Ala.  Miss.    La.  Tot. 

For  men  and  co-ed 10       10        7  7        18        5        3        5  65 

For    women     10         9  8  9  7         7  9         3  62 

Technological  schools . .     2        1  2  1         ..         1        1       . .  8 

Total    22       20       17       17         25       13       13         8       135 

A  similar  table  presents  the  number  of  corresponding  Nor- 
mal Schools  as  given  in  the  reports : 


288  EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS    IN    THE    SOUTH. 

NORMAL    SCHOOLS    FOB   WHITE    STUDENTS. 

Va.    N.  C.  S.  C,    Ga.  Term.  Ala.  Miss.    La.    Tot. 

Public  normal  schools.     1114          1422        16 
Private  normal  schools     1        2       . .  5        3        1       . .         12 

Total 2314  6732         28 

Some  idea  of  the  general  progress  of  these  institutions  may  be 
gained  from  a  comparison  of  the  reports  at  an  interval  of  several 
years.  The  table  below  is  concerned  with  the  reported  numbers 
of  students  enrolled  in  1900-1  and  1904-5.* 

•Institutions  reported  in  but  one  of  these  years  are  not  included. 

STUDENTS   IN   INSTITUTIONS   FOB   ADVANCED  EDUCATION. 

Increase 

1900-1.  1904-5,                        or 

Men.     Women.  Men.     Women.    Decrease. 

25  colleges  for  men 6,049        103*  6,875            7*      +826          —96 

36  co-educational  colleges.   7,494     2,534  7,931     2,637        +437        +103 

59  colleges  for  women 9,823        11,623          +1,800 

8  schools  for  technology..   2,918          23  3,902          17        +984            — 6 

13    public    normal    schools      683     2,122  735     3,702          +52     +1,580 

Private   normal   schools...      394        379  331        616        — 63         +237 


17,538  14,984     19,774  18,602     +2,236     +3,618 

The  total  number  of  students  in  1900-1  was  32,522 ;  in  1904-5 
it  was  38,376;  increase,  5,854;  per  cent,  increase,  18.  The  per 
cent,  increase  of  men  was  12.7;  that  of  women  24.1.  During 
the  four  years  the  proportion  of  men  in  the  co-educational 
colleg.es  and  schools  of  technology  greatly  increased,  while  in 
the  normal  schools  there  was  a  like  increase  in  the  proportion 
of  women.  In  the  colleges  for  men  exclusively  the  number  of 
students  was  much  larger  in  1905  than  in  1901,  and  the  same  was 
true  in  the  colleges  exclusively  for  women.  Apparently  the 
co-educational  system  is  less  in  favor  than  formerly.  The  in- 
creasing demand  for  women  in  the  teachers'  calling  explains 
their  growing  numbers  in  the  normal  schools,  and  the  demand 
for  men  in  positions  requiring  a  technical  education  offers  a 
reason  for  there  being  so  many  of  them  in  the  schools  of  tech- 
nology. 

*Of  the  colleges  for  men,  three  report  103  women  in  1900-1,  and  none 
in  1904-5;  three  others  report  no  women  in  1900-1,  and  seven  in  1904-5. 
It  seems  better  to  class  the  six  in  this  list  than  among  the  co-educational 
colleges. 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH.         289 

The  showing  of  the  reports  in  respect  to  maintenance  is  also 
worthy  of  attention.  Among  the  colleges  for  men  and  those 
for  students  of  both  sexes  there  are  twenty-five  which  show  an 
increase  of  productive  funds  from  an  aggregate  of  $5,847,000 
to  an  aggregate  of  $8,748,000 ;  a  gain  of  $2,901,000,  or  49.6  per 
cent.  To  be  sure,  the  greater  part  of  this  gain  is  in  a  few  insti- 
tutions, but  so  great  an  increase  in  a  brief  four  years  is  not 
without  tokens  af  encouragement  for  all.  Of  the  colleges  for 
women,  seven  show  an  increase  in  productive  funds,  though  this 
increase  is  not  large.  The  schools  of  technology  have  the  ad- 
vantage of  maintenance  from  the  United  States  Government  and 
from  the  State.  It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  that  the  reports 
show  an  increase  in  the  value  of  their  grounds,  buildings  and 
equipment  from  $2,277,000  in  1900-1  to  $3,432,000  in  1904-5; 
an  advance  of  $1,155,000,  or  over  fifty  per  cent.  The  public 
normal  schools  have  a  similar  advantage  in  the  support  of  the 
several  States  in  which  they  are  located,  and  they  show  a  like 
prosperity,  the  nine  schools  reporting  in  1905,  a  valuation  of 
buildings,  grounds  and  equipment  at  $1,490,000. 

One  can  hardly  appreciate  the  significance  of  these  institutions, 
or  understand  the  position  in  which  they  now  stand,  without 
knowing  something  of  their  history.  Many  of  them  have  a  great 
record,  reaching  back  to  times  when  the  conditions  of  their  en- 
vironment were  wholly  different  from  those  of  the  present  time. 
In  the  list  of  colleges  for  men  and  for  students  of  both  sexes 
these  are  forty-four  whose  date  of  origin  is  older  than  1865; 
and  among  the  colleges  for  women  there  are  thirty-five.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  schools  of  technology,  with  the  exception  of  two 
military  institutes,  have  all  come  into  existence  since  1870.  The 
normal  schools  likewise  are  of  recent  origin.  The  older  colleges 
are  not  all  rich  in  material  resources,  but  they  may  be  rich  in 
other  things. 

Take  a  list  of  the  twelve  oldest  colleges  in  the  South,  with 
the  dates  of  their  founding : 

College  of  William  and  Mary 1693 

Washington  and  Lee  University   1749 

Hampden-Sidney  College    1776 

University  of  Nashville    1785 

College  of  Charleston   1790 


2 DO  EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS   IN   THE   SOUTH. 

University  of  Tennessee   1794 

Greenville  and  Tusculum   1794 

Washington  College   1795 

University  of  North   Carolina    1795 

University  of  Georgia 1800 

Salem   Female  Academy  and   College 1802 

South  Carolina  College   1805 

The  first  of  these  has  been  a  center  of  intellectual  life  for  over 
two  hundred  years,  and  each  of  the  others  for  more  than  a 
century.  The  generations  gone  have  left  them  something  that 
is  worth  having  and  worth  cherishing.  Whatever  power  they 
have  had  to  guide  thought  and  govern  conduct  continues  with 
them,  having  grown  in  steadiness  and  fineness  by  all  the  vicissi- 
tudes through  which  they  have  kept  their  fidelity  to  high  ideals. 

If  these  schools  have  an  enhanced  value  by  reason  of  their 
age,  each  of  those  more  recently  established  has  a  value  of  its 
own.  Each  has  been  started  to  meet  a  want.  At  the  beginning 
of  the  last  century,  when  there  were  only  ten  colleges,  there 
were  only  1,800,000  people  in  this  whole  territory.  There  are  five 
of  these  States,  any  one  of  which  contains  now  a  larger  population 
than  that.  Then  the  most  westerly  college  was  the  University 
of  Nashville,  and  the  University  of  Georgia,  at  Athens,  was  on 
the  southwestern  frontier.  The  educational  life  that  has  gone 
into  that  whole  vast  region  to  the  west  and  south  of  these  two 
places  has  been  carried  thither  by  the  colleges  which  have  risen, 
one  after  another,  as  the  pioneers  took  possession  of  the  new 
country.  There,  as  in  the  older  States,  they  have  kept  on  coming 
into  existence  as  they  have  been  wanted.  And  always  they  have 
diffused  abroad  among  the  people  higher  conceptions  of  life, 
more  intelligence,  better  standards  of  conduct.  They  have  made 
the  attractive  college  community,  whose  almost  uniform  eleva- 
tion of  manners  and  morals  gives  tone  to  social  usages  for  fifty 
miles  around.  They  have  cultivated  the  love  of  literature,  of 
music,  of  art.  They  have  given  to  religion  a  healthier  theology 
and  a  sweeter  spirit.  They  have  purified  business  of  its  sordid- 
ness,  have  restrained  the  riot  of  passion,  have  fostered  all  the 
domestic  virtues  and  given  to  society  its  finest  amenities. 

Colleges  of  the  older  sort  have  done  all  this;  they  are  doing 
it  to-day,  and  more  than  this  in  a  hundred  places.  But  new 


EDUCATIONAL   PROGKESS    IN    THE    SOUTH.  291 

times  bring  new  wants.  The  swift  intercommunication  of  mod- 
ern life  makes  the  necessity  of  co-operation  in  everything,  and 
of  educational,  co-operation.  There  rises,  too,  the  necessity  of 
educational  centers  for  a  larger  circuit  of  influence  and  for 
greatly  multiplied  responsibilities.  This  is  why  the  State  Nor- 
mal Schools  are  coming  into  such  prominence.  They  are  a  neces- 
sity in  behalf  of  the  rural  schools  in  every  part  of  a  hundred 
counties ;  and  it  looks  as  if  these  schools  would  have  to  assume 
more  far-reaching  administrative  functions  in  the  task  of  ap- 
prenticing their  pupils  to  the  service  for  which  they  are  pre- 
paring. This  is  the  meaning  of  the  great  schools  of  technology. 
A  time  of  such  vast  business  enterprise  in  all  fields  requires 
them;  and  the  demands  upon  them  from  farm,  forest,  manufac- 
tory, mines  and  transportation  are  likely  to  be  multiplied  many 
fold  before  many  years  have  passed.  This  explains  the  greater 
university  with  its  comprehensive  embrace  of  all  departments 
of  learning  and  its  interest  in  all  fields  of  intellectual  inquiry. 
If  we  see  the  outlines  of  an  institution  coming  out  before  our 
eyes  in  colossal  proportions  that  are  unfamiliar,  it  is  because 
there  has  never  been  such  another  period  and  the  new  exigencies 
must  have  these  new  agencies  for  the  evolution  that  is  going  on. 
This  accounts  also  for  the  woman's  college  of  ampler  scope. 
Women  are  entering  into  manifold  activities  that  were  unknown 
to  former  generations.  Organizations  everywhere  for  every  kind 
of  social  and  civic  improvement  witness  to  a  feminine  efflores- 
cence as  universal  and  profuse  as  the  harvests  men  are  reaping, 
and  the  schools  of  women  must  be  rich  enough  and  comprehen- 
sive enough  to  respond  to  all  this  and  lead  it  forward  to  the 
most  sound  and  beneficent  results.  And  with  all  these  develop- 
ments there  is  such  a  need  of  that  quality  which  inheres  in 
the  older  colleges  as  no  language  can  express.  Their  ancient 
halls  of  classic  refinement,  their  atmosphere  of  meditation  and 
idealism  are  like  oases  in  the  wilderness  of  modern  industrialism. 
But  they  will  find  their  best  and  purest  life  in  meeting  the  wants 
of  the  new  times,  in  coming  into  adjustment  with  modern 
necessities  and  doing  what  they  may  to  guide  and  ennoble  a1! 
efforts  for  popular  enlightenment. 

An  essential  feature  of  the  new  educational  movement  is  its 
inclusion  of  all  the  people.     In  the  old  times,  the  poorer  people 


292        EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

saw  little  of  school  or  college;  in  the  new,  they  have  access  to 
both.  In  all  the  educational  progress  of  the  South  nothing  is 
more  wonderful  than  the  growth  of  schools  for  negroes.  The 
following  table,  showing  the  number  of  schools  of  advanced 
grade  maintained  in  each  State  for  negro  education,  has  been 
prepared  from  the  last  report  of  the  United  States  Commissioner 
of  Education: 

SECONDARY   AND    HIGHER    SCHOOLS    FOR   NEGRO    STUDENTS. 

Va.  N.  C.  8.  C.  Oa.  Tenn.  Ala.  Miss.  La.  Tot. 

Public  high  schools....     6  1  9  6        10        4       10  1  47 
Other  schools  of  high 

grade  11  17  10  17           8  13       10  5  91 

Total  number 17       18       19       23         18       17       20         6       138 

How  much  it  means  that  there  are  so  many  of  these  so  widely 
distributed!  Attention  is  sometimes  called  to  the  remarkable 
decrease  of  illiteracy  among  the  negroes  as  an  evidence  of  pro- 
gress; far  more  significant  are  their  great  schools,  which  have 
grown  and  multiplied  so  fast.  For  these  concentrate  intelligence, 
train  their  pupils  to  see  through  every  difficult  situation,  and  show 
them  how  to  live  so  as  to  derive  strength  and  joy  from  all  ex- 
periences. There  are  educational  centers  for  the  negroes  so  well 
known  and  so  penetrative  in  their  enlightening  power  that  there 
is  no  need  of  even  mentioning  their  name.  These  are  not  tem- 
ples to  literature  or  art  or  scholarship  so  much  as  training 
grounds  for  better  service  of  mankind.  The  rare  few  who  have 
the  ability  and  disposition  to  become  scholars  and  artists  will 
find  no  bar  to  their  entrance  at  the  best  endowed  universities 
of  the  North  and  of  Europe.  But  the  center  of  negro  education 
here  is  for  the  whole  negro  people.  It  is  the  mother  of  other 
schools  which  thrive  under  its  fostering  oversight  and  extend 
its  service  to  distant  fields.  It  is  the  patroness  of  all  useful 
industries.  It  is  the  mentor  to  rebuke  a  hundred  follies.  It 
is  the  friend  of  goodness,  of  genuine  religion,  of  blameless,  reso- 
lute character.  The  existence  of  such  schools  is  the  supreme 
safeguard  of  the  future  of  the  negro  people. 

In  the  nature  of  things  the  education  of  the  white  people 
and  that  of  the  negroes  must  go  on  at  the  same  time.  There 
are  manv  educational  interests  which  the  two  peoples  have  in 


EDUCATIONAL    PROGRESS    I  If    THE    SOUTH.  293 

common.  It  seems  wise  to  keep  this  in  mind.  If  both  peoples 
exert  themselves  to  advance  these  common  interests  they  will  be 
more  likely  to  succeed  than  if  one  undertakes  the  whole  and  the 
other  looks  on  in  indifference.  These  common  interests  are  most 
apparent  in  the  public  schools.  All  the  schools  are  under  the 
same  administration  and  it  is  for  the  advantage  of  all  that  this 
be  conscientious,  capable  and  efficient.  It  is  similar  with  indus- 
trial questions,  like  the  promotion  of  better  agriculture,  better 
stock  raising,  better  treatment  of  the  forests.  These  are  ques- 
tions that  concern  everybody  who  has  anything  to  do  with  a 
farm,  or  with  cattle,  or  with  cutting  down  trees.  It  makes  little 
difference  whether  he  is  a  white  man  or  a  negro;  in  either  case 
he  wants  to  know  how  he  can  do  his  work  best  and  make  the 
most  out  of  it.  In  every  educational  center  constant  attention 
may  be  given  to  all  such  great  common  interests  and  much  can 
be  done  to  cultivate  the  spirit  of  co-operation  and  mutual  help- 
fulness through  which  the  desired  ends  are  to  be  attained. 

Such  a  dependence  on  intellectual  centers  is  hardly  likely  to 
be  less  in  the  future.  As  the  schools  of  the  people  grow  and 
become  better,  the  colleges  and  universities  will  also  grow.  The 
higher  schools  will  look  to  the  colleges  for  qualified  teachers  to 
do  their  work,  and  then,  in  turn,  they  will  send  up  to  the  colleges 
their  graduates  to  pursue  advanced  courses;  thus  they  will  be 
joined  continually  in  common  interests  and  in  a  common  service. 

XII.  LAW  AND  FINANCE. 

The  spirit  of  popular  education  undertakes  to  realize  its 
hopes  through  legislation  and  taxation.  Particular  schools  and 
colleges  may  be  maintained  in  other  ways,  but  education  for 
the  people  must  be  "of  the  people  and  by  the  people."  Every 
step  of  advance  is  in  an  expression  of  the  popular  will,  first  at  the 
ballot  box,  afterward  in  meetings  of  the  school  board  and  in  ses- 
sions of  the  Legislature  and  finally  in  the  payment  of  assess- 
ments to  the  collector.  This  is  the  procedure  for  raising  the 
standards  of  efficiency  at  every  point,  for  increasing  salaries, 
securing  capable  superintendents  and  teachers,  consolidating 
weak  schools,  improving  schoolhouses,  adding  libraries,  intro- 
ducing new  courses,  regulating  terms  and  governing  the  pupils 


294 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 


in  their  attendance.    The  people  vote  and  then  the  vote  is  actual- 
ized in  the  tax. 

What  has  been  already  said  presents  some  of  the  specific 
benefits  thus  achieved.  Indication  of  the  more  general  results 
that  have  followed  in  a  number  of  States,  within  four  or  five 
years,  may  be  seen  in  the  following  tables  of  figures  obtained 
from  official  sources : 

EDUCATIONAL,  PROGRESS  IN  SEVERAL,  STATES  SINCE!  THE 
ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SOUTHERN  EDUCATION  BOARD. 

STATISTICS. 

EXPENDITURES  FOB  PUBLIC  SCHOOLS  AS  OFFICIALLY  REPORTED  BY  U.  S.  COM- 
MISSIONER AND  STATE  SUPERINTENDENT. 

(Five  Years)  1900-1. 

Virginia    $  2,012,359 

North  Carolina 1,152,920 

South  Carolina  961,897 

Georgia 2,083,366 

Tennessee     1,811,454 

Louisiana   1,236,648 


1905-6. 

Increase. 

%  Inc. 

$  3,158,497 

%  1,146,138 

56 

2,291,053 

1,138,133 

99 

1,404,474 

442,577 

46 

2,763,247 

679,881 

32 

3,247,563 

1,436,109 

79 

2,812,736 

1,576,088 

127 

Total $  9,258,644     $15,677,570     $  6,418,926 


69 


In  Alabama  expenditures  in  1900-1  were  reported  as  $923,464,  and  the 
estimate  of  the  State  Superintendent  for  1905-6  is  $1,600,000,  an  in- 
crease of  $676,536,  which  would  be  73  per  cent. 

In  Mississippi  expenditures  for  1900-1  were  reported  as  $1,472,433, 
but  exact  figures  are  not  available  for  1905-6,  nor  have  we  received 
an  estimate  from  the  State  Superintendent. 

EXPENDITURES    FOR   PUBLIC   SCHOOL   EQUIPMENTS. — GROUNDS,   BUILDINGS, 
FURNITURE,  LIBRARIES,  APPARATUS. 

U.  S.  Commissioner's  Reports. 


(Four    Years) 
Virginia   

1900-1. 
.  .   $    187,301     ! 

W04-5.          1 
I    278,982     i 

'ncrease. 
5      91,681 

%  Inc. 
49 

North  Carolina  

61,689 

296,892 

235,203 

481 

South  Carolina 

62,895 

140,169 

77  274 

123 

Georgia    (ex.   cities) 

87,952 

162,722 

74,770 

83 

Tennessee    

131,615 

261,529 

129,914 

91 

Louisiana  

60,036 

419,852 

359,816 

582 

Total $    591,488     $1,560,146     $    968,658        164 


EDUCATIONAL    PROGRESS    IN    THE   SOUTH. 


295 


ESTIMATED    VALUE    OF    ALL    PUBLIC    SCHOOL    PROPERTY. 

U.  S.  Commissioner's  Reports. 

(Four  If  ears)                        1900-1.  1904-5.  Increase.  %  Inc. 

Virginia    $3,603,634  $4,297,653  $      694,019  19 

North    Carolina    1,335,658  3,182,918  1,847,260  138 

South    Carolina 990,000  2,000,000  1,010,000  101 

Georgia 2,738,800  4,009,590  1,270,790  46 

Tennessee    3,691,069  5,171,753  1,480,684  40 

Louisiana     2,450,000  3,659,915  1,209,915  49 

Total    $14,809,161     $22,321,829       $7,512,668         51 

LOCAL   FUNDS    RAISED    FOR    SCHOOL    PURPOSES. 

United  States  Commissioner,  State  Superintendent. 

(Five  Years}                         1900-1              1905-6.  Increase.  %  Inc. 

Virginia     .  .$    985,877  $1,303,900  $    318,023  24 

North    Carolina    15,949            448,775  432,826  2,714 

South    Carolina    142,459            269,162  126,703  89 

Georgia    423,288         1,100,000  676,712  159 

Tennessee     1,631,589         2,324,429  692,840  42 

Louisiana     742,945         1,570,598  827,653  111 

Total    $3,942,107       $7,016,864       $3,074,757          78 

In  Alabama  no  report  is  available  for  1900-1;  in  1905-6  the  amount 
reported  is  $534,936. 

In  Mississippi  the  amount  reported  in  1900-1  was  $508,418;  no  defi- 
nite report  has  been  received  for  1905-6. 

XIII.   THE   CONCORD   OF  INTELLIGENCE. 

This  record  of  progress  is  traceable  to  many  causes.  The 
recent  economic  development  of  the  South  is  one  cause.  The 
increase  of  intercommunication  among  the  people  is  another. 
The  general  spirit  of  educational  interest  throughout  the  world 
is  another.  The  wide-spread  sentiment  of  personal  aspiration 
and  philanthropic  enterprise  among  the  people  of  the  South  and 
especially  among  those  who  have  most  to  do  with  educational 
work  is  another. 

But,  recognizing  the  contributions  rendered  by  all  these,  one 
other  element  may  well  be  taken  into  account — mutual  interest 
and  unity  of  purpose.  The  friends  of  education  have  come  into 
close  acquaintance,  into  understanding  of  one  another's  aims, 
into  an  attitude  of  habitual  interchange  which  has  made  those 
living  in  Virginia  a  unit  with  others  doing  the  same  work  in  the 


"2i)(\  EDUCATIONAL   PROGRESS   IN    THE   SOUTH. 

Carolinas,  in    Georgia,    Tennessee,    Alabama,    even    to    distant 
Louisiana  and  Texas. 

Information  circulated  in  print  has  value.  But  there  is  an- 
other mode  of  information  coming  from  personal  contact  that 
is  far  more  vital  and  vivifying.  To  be  with  those  who  have 
thought  on  the  subjects  in  which  we  are  interested  and  to  hear 
what  they  have  discovered;  to  be  in  a  gathering  of  people  who 
have  caught  the  inspiration  of  a  theme  which  has  been  our  daily 
meditation  and  to  blend  our  opinion  in  the  clearer  apprehension 
that  breaks  on  the  minds  of  many;  to  dwell  for  an  hour  or  a 
day  or  for  longer  in  an  atmosphere  of  heightened  intelligence 
where  obscure  things  flash  into  brightness  and  uncertain  grop- 
ings  emerge  at  a  bound  into  strong  convictions — in  such  experi- 
ences one  gets  at  profounder  lessons  than  he  can  ever  find  in 
books  or  libraries.  He  comes  to  understandings  that  throb  with 
life.  He  becomes  aware  of  vast  human  meanings  in  common- 
place tasks  making  them  look  different,  so  that  his  work  can 
never  again  be  what  it  had  been. 

Association  by  means  of  correspondence  with  a  brotherhood  of 
kindred  spirits  engaged  in  the  same  service  brings  like  results. 
Each  is  clearer  sighted  and  stronger  for  the  companionship.  The 
knotty  problems  with  which  one  has  to  deal  are  the  problems  of 
a  thousand  and  when  a  snarl  is  untangled  by  one  all  the  rest 
learn  how  it  is  to  be  done.  A  determined  effort  in  Virginia  bo- 
comes  an  example  for  Alabama;  a  fruitful  procedure  in  the 
parishes  of  Louisiana,  an  eventual  harvest  in  all  the  other  States. 
Intercommunication  makes  the  achievement  of  any  particular 
locality  the  triumph  of  many  others  and  sends  the  accruing  bene- 
fits from  one  end  of  the  land  to  the  other. 

Such  a  community  of  spirit  throughout  the  Southern  educa- 
tional field  is  characteristic  of  these  last  few  years.  It  has  come 
by  a  natural,  healthy  course.  Underneath  it  has  been  the  es- 
sential unity  of  the  public  school  system,  and  the  State  Super- 
intendents have  been  the  exponents  of  its  genius.  "Without  an 
exception  these  superintendents  have,  themselves,  manifested 
a  large  co-operative  spirit  and  stood  at  the  front  in  cultivating 
the  noble  companionship. 

The  Southern  Education  Board  has  been  especially  interested 
in  this  aspect  of  the  work.  Its  Campaign  Committee,  having  a 


EDUCATIONAL    PROGRESS    IAT    THE    SOUTH.  297 

kind  of  quiet  oversight  of  all  that  was  going  on  in  the  several 
States,  has  fostered  concord  without  intention  or  effort.  Al- 
ways in  closest  touch  with  the  State  Superintendents,  and  doing 
its  work  in  each  State  under  their  direction,  it  has  served  as 
an  agency  of  communication  between  the  States  and  brought 
their  principal  workers  closer  together.  So  with  every  year's 
•campaigning,  the  fellowship  has  broadened  and  strengthened, 
growing  constantly  in  significance  and  practical  power.  No 
one  foresaw  at  the  beginning  to  what  it  would  grow.  It  was  a 
venture  into  a  field  that  had  not  been  much  tilled,  and  the  fruit- 
fulness  has  far  outstripped  the  hopes  that  were  entertained. 

The  following  table  of  figures  shows  the  amounts  contributed 
by  the  Board  from  year  to  year  in  the  several  States  for  the 
maintenance  of  the  work  conducted  by  the  Campaign  Commit- 
tee— not  including  the  general  expenditures. 

STATE    CAMPAIGN    EXPENSES    OF    THE    SOUTHERN    EDUCATION    BOARD. 

(From  the  books  of  the  Treasurer.) 

1902.  1903.  190Jt.  1905.         1906.  Total. 

Va $  5,406.30  $  5,838.87  $  2,914.23  $  2,327.07  $  3,000.00  $19,486.47 


N.    C... 

.      2,975.99 

4,297.59 

2,996.89 

3,146.30 

2,434.08 

15,850.85 

s.  c.... 

1,260.55 

526.05 

1,644.14 

775.42 

4,206.16 

Ga  

175.00 

1,265.73 

1,238.75 

887.42 

2,505.74 

6,072.64 

Tenn.     . 

653.54 

1,989.38 

1,943.00 

1,994.87 

6,580.79 

Ala.     ... 

900.00 

400.00 

1,046.29 

1,345.30 

1,203.75 

4,895.34 

Miss.    .. 

750.00 

916.67 

691.65 

1,000.00 

3,358.32 

La  

.     1,614.86 

1,504.12 

2,284.03 

1,349,14 

2,500.00 

9,252.15 

Ky  

438.02 

218.73 

656.75 

$11,072.15  $15,970.40  $13,912.29  $13,772.04  $15,632.59  $70,359.47 

The  sums  are  not  large,  either  severally  or  in  the  aggregate, 
but  they  have  been  employed  in  such  ways  that  the  results  have 
been  most  satisfactory. 

There  are  two  ways  of  aiding  the  cause  of  education :  one  is, 
to  bestow  large  sums  for  the  creation  outright  of  institutions 
projected  according  to  conventional  designs;  another  is,  to  en- 
courage the  people  to  grow  their  own  institutions  to  meet  rec- 
ognized wants  and  accomplish  the  high  ends  of  statesmanship. 
With  full  acknowledgment  of  the  gratitude  that  is  due  to  those 
benefactors  who  have  founded  the  great  seats  of  learning  that 
are  everywhere  held  in  honor,  it  must  yet  be  borne  in  mind  that 


298         EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

such  institutions  by  themselves  are  not  adequate  to  supply  a 
people's  wants.  There  must  be  others,  and  so  many  of  them 
that  it  would  be  impossible  to  establish  them  in  any  such  way. 

The  Southern  people  have  taken  in  hand  the  task  of  develop- 
ing an  educational  system  that  shall  extend  to  all  their  children, 
and  afford  them  the  training  they  require  for  life's  various 
callings.  To  this  end  they  are  directing  their  thought  and  their 
united  endeavor.  The  Southern  Education  Board  has  done 
what  lay  in  its  power  to  encourage  such  a.  purpose,  not  on  ac- 
count of  the  South  only,  but  for  the  whole  nation. 

XIV.  BENEFITS  TO  THE  NEGROES. 

In  this  movement,  divisive  questions  have  been  avoided  and 
those  of  common  concern  have  received  chief  attention,  in  the 
belief  that  unity  is  essential  to  the  greatest  efficiency,  and  that 
every  advance  in  the  cause  of  popular  education  is  of  universal 
significance. 

The  white  people  seem  to  have  reaped  the  greatest  immediate 
advantage.  The  conferences  have  been  almost  confined  to  them 
in  the  attendance ;  they  have  caught  the  spirit  of  these  occasions, 
have  put  themselves  into  the  new  efforts  suggested  and  carried 
them  into  practical  demonstration;  naturally  the  schools  for 
white  children  have  been  the  first  to  feel  the  influence.  To 
some  it  may  even  seem  that  the  Negroes  have  not  had  their  fair 
share.  If  we  look  below  the  surface,  however,  it  will  be  found 
that  far  more  has  been  accomplished  for  the  Negroes  than  at 
once  appears. 

1.  The  situation  of  the  Negroes  has  been  a  constant  study.  The 
people  who  have  been  grouped  together  in  this  work  as  friends 
of  education  are  friends  of  the  Negro  education.  This  is  shown 
by  addresses  made  at  the  conferences,  and  still  more  in  the  per- 
sonal interest  evinced  by  those  in  attendance,  as  they  have  many 
of  them,  year  by  year,  paid  their  visits  to  Hampton,  Tuskegee, 
Calhoun  and  other  Negro  schools.    It  means  a  good  deal  that  a 
work  beset  with  so  many  practical  difficulties  has  such  earnest 
thought  given  to  its  perplexing  phases.     Thorough  examination 
of  anything  difficult  is  the  best  beginning  of  endeavor. 

2.  Many  of  the  things  accomplished  are  directly  helpful  tv 
the  Negroes.    Cultivation  of  educational  spirit,  increase  of  reve- 


EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IK  THE  SOUTH.          299 

nue,  improved  supervision,  better  training  of  teachers,  adaptation 
of  schools  to  practical  wants — all  of  these  must  work  for  the 
Negro's  good.  In  any  system  of  operations  which  involves  the 
interests  of  multitudes,  if  things  go  wrong  those  who  suffer  most 
are  the  helpless,  and  when  a  change  comes  for  the  better  these 
are  sure  to  profit  by  it.  In  the  public  school  system,  a  great  deal 
is  wrong.  Southern  men  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that  it  is  espe- 
cially so  in  the  Southern  States.  They  tell  us  that  incapacity, 
inefficiency  and  political  "pull"  have  prevailed;  that  superin- 
tendents have  been  put  in  and  put  out  for  party  purposes ;  that 
teachers  have  been  appointed  through  favoritism  and  sometimes 
for  so  much  cash  in  hand ;  that  schoolhouses  have  been  located 
for  the  convenience  of  a  single  family;  and  that  in  many  ways 
the  school  revenues  have  been  dissipated  without  bringing  to 
the  people  anything  like  the  benefits  for  which  they  were  in- 
tended. In  the  loss,  the  poorest  have  lost  most;  and  because 
the  Negroes  are  poorest  of  all  they  have  lost  more  than  any 
others.  So,  when  the  renovation  of  the  school  system  shall  be 
complete,  their  gain  will  be  the  most  conspicuous.  An  admin- 
istration of  the  public  school  system  which  secures  to  Negroes 
their  dues,  before  the  law,  as  it  is  on  the  statute  books  to-day, 
will  give  new  character  to  all  Negro  schools. 

3.  The   educational   trend,  as  fostered  by   this  movement,  i$ 
toward  a  training  particularly  desirable  for  people  in  such  cir- 
cumstances as  those  of  the  Negroes.     "Education"  has  stood 
too  much  for  things  ornamental  rather  than  useful.     It  is  com- 
ing to  stand  for  the  things  that  in  any  way  make  life  richer 
in  efficiency  and  in  fruitful  practical  experiences.    A  conception 
which  magnifies  education  for  handicraft,  for  country  life,  and 
for  skill  in  all  manner  of  occupations,  is  full  of  promise  for 
these  children  of  a  race  of  slaves. 

4.  Co-operation,  between  friends  of  the  Negro  in  the  North 
and  those  of  like  spirit  in  the  South  is  coming  into  a  most  sig- 
nificant realization.     Northern  people  are  learning  that  efforts 
from  so  great  a  distance  are  at  a  certain  disadvantage,  and  South- 
ern people  are  seeing  as  never  before  that  they  have  peculiar 
personal  responsibilities  for  the  training  and  conduct  of  these 
backward  people  who  are  all  about  them,  subject  to  their  in- 
fluence and  pliant  to  their  direction.    This  must  have  the  effect 


300          EDUCATIONAL  PROGRESS  IN  THE  SOUTH. 

in  due  time  of  improving  the  relations  between  the  people  of 
the  two  races;  it  will  gradually  eliminate  one  fruitful  source  of 
estrangement  and  bitterness;  it  will  promote  neighborly  feeling 
and  a  spirit  of  mutual  helpfulness  which  will  be  for  the  highest 
interests  of  all  alike. 

For  the  Northern  people  to  regard  this  people  in  one  way, 
and  for  the  Southern  people  to  regard  them  in  another  way  wholly 
at  variance,  is  incompatible  with  the  correct  view  on  the  part 
of  either  the  North  or  the  South,  and  it  puts  the  Negroes  them- 
selves in  a  very  bad  position  for  fulfilling  their  rightful  ser- 
vice to  themselves  and  the  nation.  Sectional  division  of  senti- 
ment must  give  place  to  a  national  unanimity  of  sentiment ;  and 
this  unanimity  must  be  so  just,  so  true  to  all  the  actualities, 
so  appreciative  of  all  qualities  of  worth  and  so  kindly  toward 
all  infirmities  of  constitution  and  environment,  as  to  com- 
mand the  assent  of  the  Negro  himself  and  the  approval  of  man- 
kind. 

5.  Many  who  are  identified  with  this  movement  have  done  large 
service  for  particular  enterprises  in  behalf  of  the  Negroes.  Men- 
tion has  been  made  of  Hampton,  Tuskegee  and  Calhoun.  Add 
to  these  the  Industrial  Reformatory  at  Hanover,  Va.,  the  Penri 
School  at  Helena,  S.  C.,  the  Industrial  School  at  Ft.  Valley,  Ga., 
the  Industrial  School  at  Sandersville,  Ga.,  and  many  other  schools 
which  have  grown  and  prospered  under  the  fostering  care  of 
Hampton  and  Tuskegee.  The  Southern  Improvement  Company 
is  another  significant  expression  of  the  same  enterprise.  The 
beneficence  from  this  source  has  made  itself  effective  also  in 
the  encouragement  of  hospitals  and  nurse  training,  in  aiding 
institutions  for  the  care  of  orphans,  in  assisting  industrial  mis- 
sions, and  other  measures  for  social  improvement.  Not  a  little 
has  been  done  for  the  literature  of  the  Negro  people.  The  quiet 
influence  of  a  magazine  like  The  Southern  Workman  is  beyond 
estimate.  Careful  study  of  many  phases  of  the  life  of  this  peo- 
ple have  been  made  and  published  in  the  periodical  press  of  the 
country.  Under  like  auspices  a  number  of  books  have  been 
printed  and  had  a  wide  circulation.  So,  in  more  ways  than  can 
be  named,  the  Negroes  have  been  helped  to  find  themselves  and 
to  acquire  higher  views  of  what  they  can  be  and  do. 

There  is  no  way  of  showing  the  extent  of  these 'manifold  quiet 
operations,  but  to  those  who  are  watching  them  with  steady  in- 
terest, they  are  by  no  means  unimportant  or  barren  of  results. 


University  of  California 

SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 

305  De  Neve  Drive  -  Parking  Lot  17  •  Box  951388 

LOS  ANGELES,  CALIFORNIA  90095-1388 

Return  this  material  to  the  library  from  which  it  was  borrowed. 


